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AKASH DHANTURI



My room is accessed via a hallway which connects it to the master bedroom, the living room and the lower floors. The walls enclosing my room are 6 inches in thickness and are made of red brick, mortar, cement and sand. The flooring throughout my house is Italian marble and the furniture is predominantly made of teakwood and accented by white-coated glass and rexine leather. The wall adjacent to the door is occupied by a wardrobe measuring 8 feet from the ground to the ceiling. The wall on the opposite end of the room consists of a window that is 2 feet off the ground and measures 7.5 feet in width and 5 feet in height. This window is covered by a curtain and a sheer curtain behind it that drape the wall from ceiling to floor. The wall of the left populated by a wall unit and a door that leads to an ensuite bathroom. The wall unit serves the multiple functions of a desk, storage area and a bookshelf. The wall on the right serves as the backdrop for a king-size bed with a side-table on either side of it.




This elevation view depicts the right wall of the room in much greater detail. The side of the wardrobe that adjoins the entry door houses a set of hooks that hold a pair of keys, a face mask and a leather canteen. On the main wall of the room, a guitar and a framed graphic poster are placed to the left and directly above the bed respectively. The guitar is suspended on the wall using an auto-swivel wall hanger and the poster, ‘The Invitation’ by Renato Casaro, is a recreation of the last supper with prominent Hollywood stars from past eras seated at the table. The bed measures 1 foot 6 inches from ground to the top of the mattress, bringing it in line with the height of the side-tables. The padded backrest of the bed rises further up to 3 feet. To the right of the bed, a yoga mat and crutches rest against the wall and further right, we meet the end wall. Two feet off the ground on this wall is a sliding window system made of uPVC with a height of 5 feet. The window is covered by a tall curtain that starts almost at the ceiling ground and ends right before it meets the ground.




The ANT Network map above begins with an exploration of the four types of plastics found in my room - ABS, High-Density Polyethylene and Polypropylene – which were all discovered to be thermoplastics with variations in melting points and other such characteristics that suited them for specific tasks. Prompted by Lego’s plans to move to 100% recycled and sustainable plastic bricks before 2030, the map diverges into architectural applications of a similar methodology. After exploring some initiatives that are exploring the possibilities of sustainable and modular housing, plastic or otherwise, the map steps out to explore some implications of such a future. To begin with, the role of an architect is re-evaluated in the context of a revival of vernacular architectural practices in a way that befits our time. Secondly, an attempt is made to list some of the major challenges and opportunities that sustainable modular housing would face in India. The final tangent of the map interrogates the deeper processes that plastic manufacturing is intertwined with and explores the viability of bioplastics as a greener alternative.




Through the graphic representation of cross-ventilation, connectivity, paths of circulation and areas of privacy, this organizational diagram shifts emphasis from the room as it is on plan to the room as it has been inhabited. Cross-ventilation, as depicted by the dashed blue line, is achieved by opening the main door and the sliding window on the wall opposite. These openings, however, visually expose the red-shaded portion of the room to the remainder of the house and its occupants. The areas shaded green are visually-obstructed and therefore relatively private. The continuous blue curve depicts the natural path of circulation through the negative space within the room. The two purple circles highlight connectivity zones with access to electrical outlets.




The curves in the organizational diagram are then used to create a graphic composition that highlights the interplay between the entities involved. Two exaggerated brackets are used to highlight the openings that connect the room to its larger context. The private regions of the room are split into positive and negative spaces and hatched with vertical and horizontal lines. Due to the irregular shape of these regions, however, a tri-directional grid is created upon increasing the stroke. The exposed areas are left unoccupied to create a continuous void through the room. The dashed ventilation line is exaggerated into seven large rounded dashes. The dashed line of the circulation path is replaced given direction by a repetition of arrows which also merge to form more arbitrary shapes when they intersect. The connectivity circles are transformed through dashed radial strokes into gear-like solid shapes.




The graphic composition is brought into the third dimension using a variety of tools. A choice is made to extrude either the grids or the spaces within the grids by 2’, 4’ or 6’ on the basis of whether the space is occupied by mass or a void. The large rounded dashes are revolved to make globules that are subsequently shifted using the Move and Rotate commands to create a sense of motion. The brackets on either end of these globules are revolved and trimmed to create openings. The two gear-like outlines are lofted 4’ and 8’ with a 45 degree radial twist. The arrows are projected (RecordHistoryOn) onto a surface whose points are then manipulated to allow the projections to avoid obstacles. The projected arrows are then trimmed out of the surface and offset to create solid arrows.




In this view, the dynamic motion of the arrows can be seen to depict the tension and effort involved with circulation when intertwined with other competing functions and relationships within a habitat. The varying extrusions created in the areas previously filled by the bed and study area contrast them from the relative homogeneity of the grid extrusions used to depict the voids.




The omission of walls and other partitions in this composition dispels the physical reality of the room as an enclosed space to give it a sense of scale more akin to a city. The ventilation and circulation markers relate the space to it’s larger context through a sense of climate and infrastructure while retaining the innate autonomy generated by it’s physical occupation and enclosure.