A Vocabulary Of Minimalism

Academician and practising architect Gadhi M is a firm believer in the purity, functionality and timelessness of minimalist architecture.

- Brinda Gill

That minimalist architecture is the best possible style of expressing purity of form is the steadfast belief of Gadhi M, a practising architect as well as Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, TKM College of Engineering, Kollam, Kerala. He believes there is an underlying simplicity to form, function, spaces, materials, elements and colours. A structure built on minimalist lines should not have unnecessary ornamentation, wall cladding or lighting and there should be a pragmatic use of materials for visual interest, texture and personality.

‘I feel that minimalism is timeless. Its beginnings in modern architecture go back to the early 20th century and it continues to be popular across the world’ says the academician-architect whose abiding admiration for the style has seen him design a spectrum of minimalist buildings during the past ten years. Having known Gadhi and his architectural approach for years, his colleague Prof Manesh Rasheed at the faculty of Physical Education, who is a fitness and football enthusiast, asked him to design a residence for his family.

Simple and Organized

Rasheed was keen on building a home in a compact pocket of land measuring nine cents (3290 sq ft) in the compound of his ancestral home in Kollam. The site was not abutting a road, had other residences on the front and sides, and a mango tree to one side. Given the parameters of the site and bringing his philosophy to the drawing board, Gadhi thought of designing a simple ground plus one storied 2150 sq ft three-bedroom structure that would snugly fit into the plot.