Vasant Kamath passes away: ‘He gave mud buildings a brand value’

His practice with architect-wife Revathi — Kamath Design Studio in Delhi — grew world renowned for their use of locally available materials and sensitivity to crafts and local skills. Be it their own mud house in Faridabad, where they turned a dis-used quarry site into an ecosystem for grasslands and seasonal plants, or an early ’80s project in Seemapuri for the NGO Mobile Creches, where they explored the properties of brick to create arches and domes.

Wellness Centre and Spa in Kundli, Haryana.

“He found what was traditional and inserted it into his modern buildings, mainstreamed the vernacular and gave mud buildings a brand value. For his six-foot-tall personality, he had a way of designing small spaces, like he did in Mobile Creches, where every detail is thought through, be it the way the light falls or a nook takes shape. He left the expansive outside and consumed as much of it, making use of every corner in an 8ft x 8ft room,” says architect Manoj Mathur, former head, Architecture Department, SPA, Delhi.

A memorial meeting for Vasant will be held at the India Islamic Centre, Delhi, on September 15 at 3 pm.