Architecture has evolved with time and is introducing massive transformations in creation of masterpieces. With its metamorphosis, the field is delivering lasting experiences to the audiences, while opening doors for endless possibilities. Businesses, dwellings, and humble abodes are experiencing a major facelift owing to the leading architectural firms, who are giving their best services to the audiences. They ensure the safety of the inhabitants, while also taking care of their comfort.
One such prominent firm which is transforming the industry with its devoted endeavors is none other than Architects at Work (AW). Established in Gujarat, it gives its best efforts to execute the client’s stated objectives. The firm strives to maintain a balance between aesthetics and functionality in all its design.
The personalities responsible for the success of AW are principal architects Ar. Shweta Pandya and Ar. Krishna Patel. They have been involved in developing architectural, landscape, and interior designing projects in Gujarat and other places since 2013.
In an interview with Insights Success, Ar. Shweta tells us about the journey of AW, its various services, the various challenges it has faced, and its plans. To know more about the interview, read the excerpts below:
1. Describe about your company/firm/profession in detail.
At ‘Architects at Work’, we thrive to present solution in the most creative and functional way for any given challenge.
Since 2013, we started working on vast variety of projects from residential to industrial, where one can find only one similarity of notion of creative flow.
As the name suggests, we work like men at work who give day and night to construct the bridge. Here, bridge is a link between the client and the built form. Bridge represents the procedure of going through creative detailing, gathering analytical data, and critically evaluating the designs to make it a smooth journey from one end to another.
The firm’s philosophy is to work as a team where each opinion is absorbed and analyzed. This process has always given different point of view to see the same problem.
Observing materials potential to its best limit can bring out unimaginable solutions.
I can sum up the firm’s description in these simple words – ‘God in detailing’.
2. Brief us about the featured person and shed some light on his/her professional tenure.
We both partners are like sub structure and super structure without which, whole building is not possible.
I, Shweta studied architecture in APIED Vidhyanagar. The place itself has so much to offer as an environment given to students of architecture. My final year rank was 2nd for thesis jury and highly appropriated for the concept. After college, I joined Apurva Amin Architects for five years which, transformed me as an architect and designer. Soon, I founded my own company and named it as Architects at Work.
My partner Ar. Krishna Patel had graduated his college from Indubhai Parekh School of Architecture, Rajkot. He had participated in competition in college period and won Birla White Yuva Ratna Westzone. Also, he got special mention in IGBC green design competition which AW takes pride on.
After graduation the situation eventuate at right time and we both signed a partnership in AW soon. The firm has so not seen back since right then and the duo was buoyant to reach till here and so on.
It was gratifying to witness everything from working on one laptop, with my kids around and established a formal office with good staff and sophisticated system.
We endeavor how we struggled to get through here with only one objective in mind to move forward taking along people with us too. People who were associated with us during our struggling times and contributed to any scale are highly valuable to us.
3. What made you venture into the field of architecture?
When I was not even aware of this course in my small town, though I was sure that I have interest in this field and gradually ways worked out ultimately and joined architecture.
Initially, it started with interest in art of different forms mostly like paintings, sketching, and sculptures.
Inclination towards creative activity resulted in searching for such career opportunities that could suffice.
Architecture has that perfect blend of artistic and intellectual, where one falls to dive in that endless creative ocean.
4. What kind of offerings do you provide to your clients?
Well, as designers, we always want to create something our client imagines having, so it’s continuous adaptation for our firm to mold ourselves after each occurrence.
We involve client in the process of making and final product in terms of taking their inputs at each stage, which ultimately refine the whole outcome as visualized by client.
We try to interact with client in detail that it become the genesis for conceptual to start with. It becomes very easy to get it on paper with that baseline to sketch that comes to life.
Clients always come up with particular budget and mindset for their project and that is always accommodated in our process. We shape the circumstances to the client’s favor to pay off what we are appointed for.
5. What kind of challenges have you faced while entering the architecture industry?
Architecture field demands your time and soul to the profession. It requires lot of energy and detailing to resolve.
Clients are difficult to make understand that, how much goes into making a building. That’s why architects are sometimes not valued for their services. It takes efforts to convince clients how much you are worth for, and I guess it is about time only.
As a designer, we also had struggled initially to receive projects. In today’s technological world, each person has lot of access to excess knowledge, which created more confusions than help. Again, that set pre-notion in client for any particular design, which is difficult to fade.
In architecture, as designers we have acclaimed a portrayal to shape anomalous designs and solutions each time we accept new project, which I guess backed ultimately to receive new proposals as that talks spread.
6. How was your firm/business affected in these pandemic times and what were the steps taken by you to curb the damages all the while helping your clients and maintaining the safety of your employees?
Pandemic was so unanticipated by all and affected us also in same way as others. If human being had found one positive aspect about pandemic was only time. We employ this time for our firm’s betterment and participated in competition by standing in top 50 internationally.
Also, it gave us novel ways of working in isolation, which helped keeping us all safe. We all been through difficulties but came out more positive and stronger. Also, that made us think of unfamiliar design solutions in such ‘keeping distance’ circumstances which, has given us altogether unique perspective to perceive the designs.
Projects that had gone to hold because of pandemic was little upsetting for all but it didn’t take long to resurgent the pace we wanted.
As architecture is essential part of our life and people need to build for any purpose of life.
7. What would you like to advice the young generation of entrepreneurs and enthusiasts who want to venture into the field of architecture?
Well, architecture field has grown from macro to micro. I’m saying that because small town and small industry also appoint architect to outline any scale space.
So, there’s opportunity for all. At the same time, technology has offered variety of sources to support your creativity.
Young generation just have to apply their knowledge wise-fully without being influenced by trends.
Also, we are facing problems like global warming which give us major responsibility to utilize natural resources in limited way and provide sustainable design solutions. Being young generation, one should very consciously give efforts towards that.
I find they have more challenges to face along with benefits than earlier architects in terms of high bars set by them. Superior work by other architects has elevated this field to pinnacle so youngsters have paramount to climb, which can be their advantage too as they will have more free hands to experiment.
8. Where do you envision your firm/business to be in the long run and what are your future goals? How do you plan to embrace the changes happening in your industry?
We want to see this firm performing diverse projects, but it should manifest as client centric firm who always works perpetually for betterment. We envision opportunity for people associated with us, thus we work towards giving them space to grow themselves.
Change is part of growing as we know in any living organism. Thus, if we want to evolve, change is inevitable. Change gives us room to ameliorate our knowledge in the field and shape a niche.
Unlike past, world have recognized lot of recent architects making names internationally like, Sanjay Puri, Gurjit Singh, Anupama Kundoo, Bimal Patel, and so on. They motivate us to work in a way where we are acclaimed in world of architecture globally.
The changes eventuate in the field are for furtherance as I see it, likewise progressively architects going for local materials, more sustainable ways and climate-oriented solutions.
Also, architecture has those online platforms accessible to put themselves on a same stage to showcase their work between other global architects.
9. What is the current scenario of the architecture industry?
The architecture industry has lot of latitude in coming years in India, as we are developing country with booming economy.
Architecture can be embodied at urban level or rural level, to attribute solutions to aged trends and systems. Architecture industry has now assistance on management, marketing, and planning on e-platform which has made substantial projects to work smoothly bridging so many agencies on one page. Also, the 3D simulation and other visual representation which make a layman to understand designs easily.
All these supports make designs and execution process accelerate which has stated a big push to the industry. Also, this industry is based on distinctive kind of skills. The machine work and hand-skill have that interspace which can’t be acquainted. The artwork and skill-based labour are merely relied on this industry and vice versa.
It is difficult to get finely skilled person sometime. The more skills-based education we increase, it is better for the industry’s future.
