The Architecture of FOREIGN ARCHITECTS in Nepal

Text:

Biresh Shah

IN A COUNTRY WHERE THE ROLE OF THE MODERN ARCHITECT IS BEING

ACKNOWLEDGED ONLY
NOW, THE EXPOSURE TO THE VARIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL PRODUCTION
REALIZED BY
THESE FOREIGN ARCHITECTS OFFERS SIGNIFICANT LEARNING
FOR THE NEW ARCHITECTS IN NEPAL.
Nepal opened up for modern development only after 1950. Thereafter and as the experience of constructing
modern building types was rather limited in Nepal, a wide range of foreign architects have worked and contributed
to the architectural design of the country. Their involvement with projects in Nepal within the last fifty years has
followed diverse streams and the production of architecture by these foreign architects, therefore, corresponds to
the nature/characteristics of these streams, established by the scale, complexities, funding and intent of the
projects. Together, this body of work illustrates a rich and diverse range of architectural ideas and responses in
Nepal, as the requirement for modern building types has transformed with the pace and nature of modern
development.
The work of foreign architects can be categorized in the following four broad streams.

The 1st Stream: Foreign Practitioners in Kathmandu

As the Valley opened up for modern development in the 1950s, and after the end of the Rana regime, a number of
technical assistance projects arrived from various countries and international institutions. For the early architects
like Robert Weise, who came with Swiss assisted projects, the Valley must have been a great sight to behold - the
ancient cities of the Valley set between large expanses of lush green paddy terraces, meandering rivers, and the
surreal baroque garden palace compounds built at the turn of the last century. Weise was among the first of these
foreign architects who made Kathmandu their home and set up their practices for extended periods.
Along with Weise, the other major architects who stayed to make significant contributions were Carl Pruscha,
David Dobereiner, Gotz Haagmueller and John Sanday. Besides them, many other foreign architects have worked

towards the design and construction of numerous community-based projects throughout Nepal, like schools and
hospitals/health centers, which were funded by sources outside the country. And we need to learn more about this
specific body of work. Their architecture evolved from their personal experiences of the Valley, as they put to use
their training in the western universities in realizing their specific architectural ideas. Charmed by the rich
traditions here, they developed design ideas rooted in the context rather than promoting stereotypes from their
countries of origin.

Weise designed residences, hotels and office buildings. He is credited with the re-introduction of local
architectural scale and the sloping roof forms, evoking two very signifi cant characteristics of the traditional
architecture of the Valley. His office also was one of the earliest private practices to hire Nepalese architects
returning to Nepal after
completing their education abroad. Weise designed several prominent architectural landmarks like the Annapurna
Hotel, The Yellow Pagoda Hotel, the Nepal Army Headquarters, besides a large number of single residences and
projects in the Tribhuwan Unversity Campus in Kirtipur.
Pruscha came to the Valley on a UNDP assignment to produce the fi rst urban development plan for the Valley in
the late 60s. During the time he spent here, he also supervised the preparation of the first inventory of cultural
monuments of the Valley. His significant contribution was in the design and construction of the Tara Gaon Hotel
and the Institutional building CEDA for Tribhuwan University.
The Taragaon Hotel was designed to provide lodgings for foreign consultants coming to the Valley on extensive stay.
The complex constructed almost entirely in exposed brick with wooden windows evokes the spirit of the small
traditional town form, using an entirely new architectural form, the exposed brick vaults. The resulting built-form
is modern, yet feels so much part of the tradition of the Valley. Recently this building has become part of a huge
hotel complex. The building has recently been subject to some temporary modifications which totally disregard its
original architectural quality. The author initiated the documentation of this building with the help of the students
of the Tribhuwan University, since the original drawings had been lost. This was possibly the first instance of a
modern building being documented in the Valley for research and restoration purposes.

The Center for Economic Development and Administration (The CEDA building), an independent center of the
Tribhuwan University, was designed by Pruscha in the 70s. The building, again in exposed brick, is set into the
terraced agricultural landscape as a series of geometrical forms which offer a complex composition to create
strong public spaces. In this building the architect has again pursued a fresh architectural idea through the design
of a modern composition of forms set in a primordial landscape, which evokes his deep understanding of the
Valley.
Gotz Haagmueller, an Austrian Architect, came to Kathmandu to work with the GTZ-supported Bhaktapur
Development Project in the 70's and has made Bhaktapur his home since then. Although most of his work has been
in the area of restoring several heritage buildings of significance, he has used his long experience and knowledge
of traditional architecture of the Valley to establish design innovations in adaptive re-use of historic buildings in
Patan, Bhaktapur and Kathmandu. His important projects are the Patan Museum, the Keshar Mahal Gardens and his
own house in a traditional courtyard in Bhaktapur. These projects demonstrate the wide range of contemporary
design possibilities in restoring old buildings for contemporary use.

The 2nd Stream: Work of Internationally known Architects

The second stream belongs to the works of internationally renowned architects, who were contracted by
international aid agencies or organizations to design specifi c buildings or complexes in Nepal. Most of these were
single project involvement within a limited timeframe, and rarely demonstrates innovative efforts by the
architects in a new challenging context.
Kenzo Tange prepared the Master Plan of Lumbini, Buddhas Birthplace. He also designed the most important
buildings in the Master Plan. After the Second World War and as South Asia embarked on a process of
modernisation, Tange's Lumbini Project is the only project in modern Nepal by an internationally renowned
architect which offers a comparison in terms of scale and scope of other Prestige Projects by prestigious foreign
architects in South Asia, like the Capital Complex of Dacca and other large important complexes. However, being
located in an obscure southern region of the country, the project failed to generate the enthusiasm that it perhaps
deserved. It also took a long time to get off the ground. Subsequently when it did pick up momentum, it fell prey
to speculative development, both within the Master Plan area and outside it. Its contribution to contemporary
architecture thinking has been very limited too.

Among the most famous and controversial projects in the country is the Family Planning Centre (funded by the
USAID), designed by Louis I. Kahn. This project, among Kahns last projects, was designed in a largely
governmental institutional area. Kahn even prepared a Master Plan of the entire area, which was followed only
partially. Kahn designed a symmetrical composition of exposed brick piers interspersed by vertical strips of wooden
windows. The building was topped off by a one-store high exposed brick parapet with deep punctures enclosing
large roof terraces (possibly meant to be courtyards in the sky). In 1995, the current resident of the building, the
Ministry of Health, decided to put a metal roof over the terraces to create more floor space. The local
architecture community protested by taking out public protests. A media campaign was launched,
and simultaneously a legal case was fi led in the apex court by the Society of Nepalese Architects. However, the
bureaucrats of the ministry prevailed, since rules to protect contemporary building as cultural assets were feeble.
Tadao Ando, the renowned Japanese architect, designed a Womens and Childrens hospital in Butwal, which was
supported by a Japanese Charity Organisation (AMDA) in the 90's. Benjamin Polk, the American architect, designed
the new Narayanhiti Royal Palace. Some of the leading Indian architects also made their mark. Achyut Kanvinde
designed the Rampur Agricultural Campus and Habib Rahman designed buildings in the TU Campus.
Barring Polks Narayanhiti Palace, which sits almost in the middle of the City restructuring that took place under
King Mahendra, none of the other projects really captured the imagination of either the public nor the architects.
In the design of the new Royal Palace building at the top of a newly created boulevard, Polk achieved a rare
resolution of the issue of cultural identity and monumentality in a modern project without being very extravagant
or resorting to kitsch.

The 3rd. Stream: Works of Foreign Design Invisible Consortiums in

Public Projects

The third stream of work by foreign architects relates to the construction of large and programmatically complex
building complexes, which were built as technical assistance projects. The bilateral agencies which executed these
projects brought their own consortium of architects/consultants to ensure a certain standard in design and
construction.

Most of these projects required the design and construction of building types which had no precedence in the
Valley. Therefore functional design, ease of maintenance, limitations of construction technology in a developing
country and minimizing use of energy, were the principal design considerations in these projects. Generally,
architectural scale and materials which fit in easily in the landscape were considered, besides which, setting a
new quality of construction standards was also an important objective. At the behest of JICA, consortiums of
Japanese architects were brought in to design the Teaching Hospital Campus, the Sano Thimi Tuberculosis Centre
and the Disaster Mitigation Centre among others. The Japanese projects achieved a high standard of programmatic
and technical resolution as well as construction quality, while remaining largely indifferent projects
architecturally.
The government architects from India executed a number of buildings in the city like the General Post Office
building, the telecommunications buildings, and hospital projects like the Bir Hospital, the BP Koirala Institute of
Medical Sciences in Dharan, and more recently, the New Trauma Centre in the Bir Hospital. The General Post Offi
ce and Telephone Exchange Building were among the very fi rst buildings constructed between the mid- 60s and
early seventies, dedicated to the development of institutions related to modern communication. Designed by the
architects of various Departments of the Indian Government, they demonstrate the modern architects
preoccupation of translating modern functions into new architectural expression. Although it would be difficult to
establish these projects of having any exceptional architectural merit, they demonstrate a certain rigor of design
and detailing as well as an acknowledgement of the civic context. The new Trauma Centre, which occupies a very
prominent urban site on the Tundikhel, is the latest addition in this category of buildings. While no one doubts its
resolution of a rather complex programme, its gesture to the city as a large architectural addition is at best
feeble.

The Chinese Government on the other hand brought in its own government architects to design the Birendra
International Convention Centre and the new Civil Employees' Hospital. Both these projects were grant projects
from the Government of China; their design and construction being undertaken by Chinese consortiums. While both
projects occupy very important and visible sites, their architecture is quite indifferent to making any connection
with the City.
Exception perhaps is the International Terminal Building of the Tribhuwan Airport, which was an international loan
project with international consultants and constructed by international contractors. The linear building, which is
sited at the top of a sloping topography, is seen as an extension of the series of terraces in the foreground
landscape. The use of exposed brick as the major faade material further integrates this rather large building with
the city.
A similar design attitude can also be observed in the design and construction of Foreign Embassy compounds in the
city. These include the US Embassy compound, the Japanese Embassy and the Ambassadors Residence, the German
Embassy, the Chinese Embassy, the Russian Embassy, the Danish Embassy, the Norwegian Embassy and the new
Indian Embassy (now under construction).
Internationally, the architecture of Embassy buildings are a significant opportunity for the country to demonstrate
its cultural identity. The architecture of foreign mission also offer an opportunity to contribute to the landscape of
a city by inserting a fresh architectural vision to an established architectural context. Most of the embassy
buildings in Kathmandu, designed by architects from their respective countries, do not seem to be very successful
in this regard. Perhaps the concern for security, functionality and specifi c national norms/standards were a
greater design concern for the designers.
However, the design and construction of the Norwegian Embassy is an exception. While the architectural concept
was developed by Norwegian Architect, Kristin Jarmund, the design development of the project leading towards
construction took place in Kathmandu in collaboration with Nepalese consultants. The project was constructed by
a Nepalese contractor as well. The design idea consciously seeks to fi t and contribute to the city fabric, while
offering us a glimpse of modern Scandinavian aesthetics.

The 4th Stream: Architecture For Private Sector Commercial Projects

The last stream of works by foreign architects relates to large construction projects requiring master planning and
advanced technical/design services in large-scaled commercially driven projects promoted by the Private Sector.
For reasons of economy, as well as working practicality, a majority of the architects have been large architecture
offi ces from India. Initially these architects were employed in large hotel projects like Soaltee, Taragaon Hyatt
Regency, Radisson, Yak and Yeti and the Fulbari Resort. However several high-end resorts outside the Valley have
also been designed by non-Indian architects as well.

The Taragaon Hyatt Regency Hotel, which opened its door only a couple of years ago, is arguably the most
important new hotel in Kathmandu today. Designed by a group of Japanese and Indian architects, it claims to have
integrated the essential spatial and formal characteristics of the traditional built environment. What has been
achieved seems to be quite far from this claim. The two most important parts - the traditional built form and the
scale and spatial composition, have been ill considered in this design. The hotel has been planned along two very
strong axes perpendicular to each other (reminder of a baroque plan), thus preventing shifting vistas, a significant
aspect of the traditional space. The other aspect is the massive scale generated by a sloping tiled roof of almost
twentyfive feet high pitch.
In the last five years, as investment intensified due to booming property markets in the construction of multistoried residential apartments and modern shopping centres, the influx of large architecture firms from India has
intensified. The superior experience and capacities of these foreign architecture consortiums makes them the
natural choice of private sector investors for undertaking large complex building types, which have to be
completed within limited time frames. In this category of work, the foreign architects have worked for Clients
based in Nepal, financed by Nepalese Banks, constructed by mainly Nepalese contractors and approved by
Nepalese authorities. Therefore, the level of interaction with local stakeholders has been much greater in these
projects than in previous technical assistance/grant projects. But this also pits the national architecture
professional community in direct competition with this category of foreign architects, which is an issue that needs
debate.

Conclusion

Foreign architects, in the past fifty years, have realized their architectural intentions and visions in Nepal through
a variety of channels. In a country where the role of the modern architect is being acknowledged only now, the
exposure to the variety of architectural production realized by these foreign architects offers significant learning
for the new architects in Nepal . Arguably these architects come from a background of modern architectural
training and practice much older than ours. But we need to document and attempt to understand their work and
contributions within our developmental context. This can be of significant value to us to establish firmly our own
pursuits and directions in architectural design, as well building capacity to undertake architectural challenges in
the future.