Startup Architecture

Curated by Asmita Patnaik.

Architecture is a very pragmatic profession – an art built on the foundation of necessity.

For many architects and students, having your own firm some day is an aspiration. To be able control the kind of projects you want to work on, to design on your own terms, to have the final say on every project does have its own ring to it.

Although this paints a pretty picture, the realities of starting a firm are far from this. Starting a firm is a slow, grueling process with challenges beyond what one can envisage or is prepared for.

The challenges do not just curtail to design prospects but extend to a lot of business challenges that, we as architecture students have not been prepared or adept to handle. Today, to be a successful design practice a lot goes into making than just a vision for architecture.

Full design control often comes at the cost of learning how to successfully handle a business and being equally or more involved in the financial and logistic aspect of the practice than the creative end that one aspires to be on. You have to be well versed with payment, cost, technology, job security, obtaining new projects, maintaining a client base, completing the project, coordinating with vendors, specialists, and everyone else involved in the project. One has to go above and beyond their role as a designer and confront the business management side of the profession. An aspect which is not the area an architect usually thrives in.

This devil’s tradeoff though comes with its own opportunities for the architect. The challenges that come with starting a practice hardly ever materialize with easy and fast rewards. Architects take almost a decade or more to establish and grow as a practice. It requires patience, grit and an adept knowledge of the business. More over starting your own practice, can initially lead to financial instability and economic turbulence. Furthermore, it is difficult to get projects without an already established portfolio.

While the stakes are higher when you are starting out as a practice, it does allow an unhinged sense of designing freedom. One can address design experimentations and explorations and develop their own design aesthetic. It also allows one to make a difference and make their own contributions to the society.

So how does one who wishes to venture out be prepared to handle the adversities? Is the dream worth the trepidations?

Let us engage with a few emerging architectural practices who have managed to successfully handle these challenges and ask them their views on the same.

In the first part, we present the views of eleven architects from India.

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“Believe in yourself. Acknowledge the opportunities that can be grasped upon and deliver on them.” – Akshay Heranjal The Purple Ink Studio Interview

In conversation with Akshay Heranjal, Principal Architect and co – founder of The Purple Ink Studio; a multiple award winning practice which was started in 2011. The brainchild of architects Akshay Heranjal and Aditi Pai , this Bangalore based firm evolved as a confluence of two distinct architectural backgrounds – one being extremely rational, aesthetic yet responsive and the other being based on strong responses to nature and inclusion of natural elements in design.

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Studio Symbiosis

“For us we see each challenge as put forth here as an opportunity” – Amit Gupta and Britta Knobel Gupta, Studio Symbiosis

Established in 2010, the firm has received several awards and accolades since then. The firm has been involved in varied ranges of projects including villas, hotels, sports city, masterplan and other projects of various scales. Their design philosophy is to create integrated design solutions imbibing amalgamated, efficient, robust and sustainable designs leading to performative architecture.

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Gaurav Kapoor, Layers Design Studio

“In the beginning keep your expectations low, and focus on producing good work.” – Gaurav Kapoor, Layers Studios for Design & Architecture

In conversation with Gaurav Kapoor, principle architect and co-founder of Layers Studios for Design & Architecture in Delhi. Along with partner Neha Bhardwaj, he works in the field of architecture, landscape design and interior design with the pursuit of developing an architecture practice which can incorporate local traditions, international ideas, respect for the environment and cutting-edge technology in its design sensibilities.

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Huzefa Rangwala _ MuseLAB

“Architecture unfortunately, doesn’t teach us the art of business; it only teaches us the art of design.” – Huzefa Rangwala, MuseLAB

MuseLAB, a Mumbai based architectural firm, a collaborative effort of two friends turned partners, was built on their similar wavelength on design sensibilities. Both, Huzefa Rangwala and Jasem Pirani had previously worked with renowned practices before starting their own firm in 2012. Although a relatively young firm, MuseLAB has made their mark due to their unique and client specific design solutions with intensive care for details irrespective of the project’s scale.

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