IN-FLOW

An inside look into Kumbh-mela’s extreme form of temporary urbanism

Master thesis (2020)

Authors

A. Kumar Architecture and the Built Environment

Contributors

H.H. Bier Architectural Engineering - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
F. Adema Building Product Innovation - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 2)
A.J. Hidding History, Form & Aesthetics - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 2)
Faculty
Architecture and the Built Environment
Copyright: © 2020 Arav Kumar
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Published Date

28-01-2020

Language

English

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Abstract

IN-FLOW deals with a context driven research into the unique ephemeral nature of a temporary pop up city in India. The site is situated in the northern city of Allahabad[now Prayagraj] at the confluence of two river, Ganga and Yamuna respectively. The site facilitates the gathering for religious festival called “The Kumbh Mela”. It is the largest public gathering in the world, drawing 150 plus million pilgrims over the course of three months. The site functions on a set of temporal cycles where the site is under water during rainy season, the city materialises during the dry period once the water subsides and after the festival is dismantled the farmers use the same plots for farming. The Thesis deals with a system where the site goes through various differential states and hence leads to flow of architecture and material structure from one state to another. This reversibility could serve as a rich case study to examine the working behind a temporary pop up city. The thesis is carried out at the Robotic Studio, with emphasis into the various robotic tools available to form a design intervention which adheres to the social and material culture of the site. The specific research question raised here is: Can Innovative tools (Robotic fabrication) further the craft of local construction principals around the site?