Architectural Poem Writing Competition, India: Series 1 was themed as "An Architect’s Life"

Concept brief was described in the competition as: “Touching infinity is indeed the travesty of nature. That our minds have such ability has made architects reach this point. Skyscrapers seem touching the sky; architecture has been brought to such a level, and we have to take it higher than this. This evolution is the result of our needs and wants. Art is huge while time is short. We have brought ourselves to this level, and we still have to raise our levels and build many more structures that are not only beautiful but also provide utmost comfort to its inhabitants without compromising the respect for Mother Nature”.

Series 2, was themed to explore "A Building worth Applauding"

“Buildings enhance the quality of life and heighten visual delight. The contextual importance of a building should be considered appropriately according to climate, site and wind direction before starting the construction. A form of a building holds its importance as it signifies its functional requirement; conditions such as earth, the sun, trees, and winds determine the former. The Buildings should be worthy of looking at as well. Thus, they must be created as self-explanatory in their designs”.

The organization has announced the winning Verses and the winners with their Stanzas are as under:

Stanzas: Series 1

Citation: "An Architect’s Exploration". By Nishchint Srivastava

Stanza - "An Architect’s Exploration":

Buttressed with vision and the ideas that gleam,

An architect strives day and night to make his castle of dreams.

Majestic skyscrapers stand tall beyond heights,

Soaring higher and higher, attempting to touch the skies.

Satiating the demands of society through his artful expression,

These masterpieces are surely made out of conviction…!!

Inspired by nature, he fabricates his own visual delight,

Challenging heaven that earth can have its own paradise.

Unraveling the knowledge he has encapsulated in his mind,

He endeavors to set a paradigm of the sovereign kind.

He looks through his glass window to the city and beholds,

A lot has been discovered and a long way to go.

Special Mention: "More Is Less". By Aqsa Dudhniwala

Stanza - "More Is Less":

Long forgotten are days

Only the night remembers by

Scrubbed myself through the toil

For a Monday without a cry.

Chained, but free

Is it me or just my mind?

Afraid! It allows me here to think so wide.

Multiple bags I carry for the many dreams I have

Bold and strong, always by my side

Wow! There is still much more to it when I design

They now talk to me whenever I feel confined.

Great cities review the great rise

“Picture it!” the road said, “For you may not remember after a while.”

Walking through it contemplating its madness

Forget? Really?! I paint a stone, I build a canvas!

And so on the week goes by

Horizons are widened and the days ahead sigh

The view looks happy for it really has a blue sky.

Will I ever reach it? Maybe it is tough

The voice inside me says, "It’s never going to be enough."

Consolation Certificate: "Facadism". By Shikha Mehta

Stanza - "Facadism":

Its introduction leaves a lasting impression,

Being an art of seduction and a masterpiece of manipulation.

All those eyes watching it – up high,

Wondering if it’s for true.

Hysteria.

Entering right through its heart,

We fall into its trap, asking ourselves,

Does it even fit into its mold?

Delirium.

Walking inside; wondering, looking at its intricate layers,

Maybe the world is not ready to see it,

Cubic soul,

And the cubic zirconia.

Hiding the design thinking nobody will understand.

Sensitive.

At the final look, it still stands,

Covered in an irony of life.

Happy and perfect,

Beautiful and sublime.

Though a lie, the first impression is what matters.

Speechless.

Stanzas: Series 2

Special Mention_1: "Two Souls". By: Tejashrii Shankarraman

Stanza - "Two Souls":

As I follow my shadow towards her,

I feel the cool stone beneath my feet.

Light creeps in through her traceries

And her presence dawns on me.

Barring a few souls and their prayers,

She is quiet, yet not empty.

And in this solitude

She speaks to me plenty.

Like a song, she unfolds at every corner,

Being her loudest near the water.

As my shadow follows me,

The stone now feels rough.

Shades of dusk grasp at her

And her presence fades to my senses.

Beyond the voices of families and children,

Her voice is but a faint echo.

This is another song of hers,

But I am still listening to the former.

Special Mention_2: "Raumplan". By Parichita Mohapatra

Stanza - "Raumplan":

A building with colors not very vibrant,

And materials and textures not too extravagant,

Neither lavish interior nor a façade that’s jaw-dropping,

Makes a building worth applauding.

But a building, bridging the gap between,

Van der Rohe’s “Less is More” & “Venturi’s “Less is Bore”,

Through its design portraying color wheel's galore.

It’s porosity and fabric amalgamating the tangible and intangible,

Nature-friendly, evolving as a reflection of the Earth, our mother,

For a child so innocent, an envelope, like the womb of a mother.

A building defining the concept of “Form Follows Function”,

So harmonious with its function, that accentuates the form,

To engross the users in activities that it choreographs,

A building when one enters, into a divine experience, it morphs.

Overwhelmed with joy, being fascinated by the story it weaves,

Strong enough to have within it, multiple volumes.

This building becomes worth applauding,

With varied heights and levels too many, but,

A single motivation of creating everlasting inspiration,

For the common man, incorporating Loos’ Raumplan!

Consolation Certificate: "An experience, perhaps!" By Sabira Saleem Shaikh

Stanza - "An experience, perhaps":

Where you want to come again
Where arrival feels like a departure,
To another journey
Where standing a few minutes more
Doesn't get any bored!
Is a building worth applauding for

The building that speaks for itself
Because it has risen from the furnace of trial,
And emerged as pure as gold
Where the designer doesn't narrate
And building speaks for its own trait
Is a building worth applauding for

A building that provides experience
With the aid of woods, beams, and breeze
That doesn't leave mother nature
To the building, in return the mother nurture
Is a building worth applauding for!

Jurors for these Series were:

Prof Krishna Rao Jaisim: Principal Architect Jaisim-Fountainhead

Ar. Pappal Suneja, Freelance Architectural Journalist, India

Prof (Ar.) SS Behl: Dean, Guru Nanak Dev. University, Amritsar

Ar. Surinder Bahga, Chairperson B&C IIA Punjab and Principal Architect, Saakar Foundation

Ar. Sangeet Sharma, Practicing Architect & Author Chandigarh

Ar. Jinisha Jain, Prof. McGAN’S Ooty School of Architecture

For Further Updates, visit the Facebook Page of the Competition Series.

Top Image © Pappal Suneja (Jal Mahal, Jaipur)

> via Architectural Journalism Series