Turning to Materiality as Method: SJK Architects November Newsletter
- SJK Architects
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
A Calm Home that Thinks Through Timber
Set in Alibaug, Awas House is a retirement home that we designed for a Mumbai-based entrepreneur seeking a simple village home nestled in nature. We resolved every space with care to preserve clarity and quietude. The house rests lightly on the land, opening itself to changing seasons. At the heart of this quiet architecture lies a material innovation: we reinterpreted the region's timber and brick 'wada' tradition through glue-laminated timber and drywall, honouring vernacular warmth while advancing environmental performance and economic feasibility.
A Dialogue Across Centuries and Religions
At the Jain Heritage Museum in Koba, a 16th-century edict narrates an interesting tale set in Akbar's court. Acharya Heersuri posed a question to Akbar that would echo across history: "How could a man's stomach be a tomb of animals?" So moved was the emperor of Hindustan by the clarity of Jain thought that he renounced hunting, gave up meat, and banned the slaughter of animals on sacred days. The exhibition design also draws from this moment, reinterpreting the edict's tale in a contemporary, theatrical setting. The design brings to life the enduring Jain ethic of reverence for all life, carrying a centuries-old dialogue into the present.
Designing for Feeling, Not Fahrenheit
This Saturday, partner Vaishali
Mangalvedhekar will be speaking at the IGBC
Green Building Congress 2025 on thermal comfort as a lived reality shaped by habit, culture, and climate. She will be examining dominant standards that reduce thermal comfort to narrow temperature bands.
Drawing on traditional strategies such as courtyards, stepwells, and porous envelopes,
her presentation will explore responsive, people-centred design and policy to tackle
India's climatic and lifestyle diversity, promoting resilience and comfort without defaulting to uniform mechanical cooling.
Exploring AI in and Architect's Craft
The Al wave "prompted" us to do a workshop to explore the potential of Al-integrated design. As the workshop unfolded, a rough hand-drawn sketch was transformed into a stunning visual within 45 minutes using Mnml.ai, guided by our Senior Architect, Nisha Saraf. The session was oriented to creating comfort with discovery, by testing how prompts and our intuition can converse to enrich the creative process.
Shimul Javeri Kadri joins the World Expolympics Jury at Expo 2025, Osaka
Shimul Javeri Kadri joins an international jury of thirty-two design leaders chosen by the
Experiential Design Authority for the World Expolympics at Expo 2025, Osaka. The jury brings together global voices pioneering pavilion designs that exemplify innovationi, storytelling, and experiential architecture.
The Light House Wins at Kyoorius Design Awards 2025
Our design for the Light House was awarded a Baby Blue Elephant at the Kyoorius Design Awards 2025 in the 'Architecture-Urban Design' category. The project reinterprets traditional 'wada' and 'haveli' architecture through an interplay of light, wind, and timber, creating connection and comfort in contemporary urban living. It was also shortlisted for this year's FRAME Awards, which recognise outstanding achievements in the field of interior design, under the 'Living' spatial category.
