We draw from local wisdom and climate responsive principles, integrating human comfort and developing an aesthetic from found material.
Workshop
Building Camp is going to make nine independent dwelling units of 100 sq.ft. of internal area. These units will serve as an independent room that fulfills the shelter needs of travelers that visit Leh.
The architectural design is to be informed by local wisdom and climate responsive principles, integrating human comfort and developing an aesthetic from found material.
The building camp aims to immerse the participants in an experiential journey with a team of designers and building artisans who will be working on site to create habitable living units from the materials locally available – soil, gravel, sand, lime, metal scrap, tyres, timber, wool, natural fiber and other salvaged materials. Intensive hands-on building will be permeated with heritage walks, sketching trips, local context studies, film screenings, art making, Presentations and group discussions and a sense of comradery by working together.
There will be Facilitators working on three pods at any given time, and the camp will span over three months. The camp is divided into three phases, each phase, five weeks long. Participants will be assigned a facilitator to work with through the duration of stay.
Every attendee would be expected to contribute a minimum 6 hours of on-site construction work per day to help with the movement of material and the assembly of various building elements and landscape design.
Schedule
The Building Camp will be divided into three phases, each on a month long. The timeline is tentative. Please get in touch for exact dates.
Phase 1 – 7th July onward
Phase 2 – 7th August
Phase 3 – 7th September
Participants are expected to give at least ten days of participation, for the best takeaways from the building camp. Longer stays will be discounted.
Fees
The fees is inclusive of accommodation, food, local transport and activities.
1 week – 15,000/-
2 weeks – 26,000/-
4 weeks – 42,000/-
An advance of Rs 5000/- will confirm your registration in the workshop.
Remainder amount should be cleared before arrival. The minimum duration of participation is one week to ensure a wholesome learning experience.
Phase I
Week 1 – acclimatization, context study, initiating design discussion, visit to scrapyard, budgeting, material procurement for foundation, foundation work
Week 2 – discussions on superstructure detailing, material procurement, start to superstructure
Week 3 – continue work on superstructure, opening details, design discussions on roof, material procurement for roofing structure
Week 4 – roofing structure
Week 5 – finishing work, cleaning and wrap up
Schedule is indicative. May change with the design lead’s planning.
Stay
Accommodation campus is located twenty minutes from the construction site, in a scenic location next to a river. Shared dormitories or tents will be provided for stay during the camp. Participants will have access to a common bathing and toilet facility on campus.
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner will be nutritious and of good quality based on the local produce. One can expect occasional bonfires and barbecues after long days of work.
Transport of participants to and from the construction site will be taken care of by the organizers..
Learning experience
The learning opportunities in this workshop are experiential in nature. Practical skills, and material know-how will be developed while physically and mentally engaging with the work and participating in the design dialogue with the facilitator and construction team. The design process will largely be steered by the lead facilitator, defined by their working method and decision making process. The workshop attendees will engage in the design dialogue with the facilitators and will be assigned a suitable role.
An explorative atmosphere is encouraged, with enough space for parallel discussion. All this would be done through hands-on approach by immersing oneself into the scenario and responding to the immediate requirements of the design process and the program that is chalked out for the workshop, with much room for improvisation on site.
The activities entailed in the workshop will be labor intensive and are listed below:-
· Survey / Note-taking / sketching / photography / diagramming – Maintaining a journal
· Masonry for walling and foundations
Hands-on construction / Manual work for foundation, super-structure, masonry walls, cavity walls, roof, floors, decks, porch.
· Metal Fabrication and Carpentry of building components
Handling metal scrap such as cutting, welding, riveting, grinding and application of putty, paints and finishes
Woodworking – Sawing, Planning, interlocking and bolted joineries, Timber floor, timber roof
The Hearth Builds 