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blog - introduction 01

Part 1: Extract from the Morphogenesis Monograph Introduction Essay

We bring you the first of a 14 part series of extract from the Morphogenesis Architecture Monograph, to give you a peek into the mindspace of one of India’s best recognized, sustainable design practices. 

“It has been 20 years since the inception of Morphogenesis out of a home garage. This book records our work through that journey. In the midst of a paradigm change in the nascent liberalised economy of the 1990s, this decision to set up Architectural practice was a poignant one.

We felt most strongly about sustainable architecture, and not just in terms of purely energy, but also environmental, social, cultural and financial sustainability. A valuable learning from the wisdom of the past has been that traditional architecture has always been sustainable, whether as a response to climatic conditions or a dearth of resources.

We believe that Architecture, Design and Urbanism as processes need to be in step with this radical shift. It is this bridge, between tradition and modernity, where the work of the practice is positioned. Thus, we like to think of our work as ‘the Indian Perspective, in the Global Context’.

We have successfully created exemplars that consume 70 percent lesser energy than established green rating benchmarks, without incurring additional cost. It is this inclusive nature of design with a focus on passive and low energy architecture that we believe in and hope to contribute to a new, emergent architecture.

Evolutionary processes in nature inspire our approach to organisational behaviour. Collaboration is fundamental to our approach and we believe strongly in the value of cross-pollination of ideas. We have always viewed the firm as a hive of like-minded people who bring diverse skills to form a professional practice with an ethos of a learning institution and this belief has led to Morphogenesis having landscape design, urban planning, interior design, lighting design and product design as in-house specialisations that inform all our designs.

We believe that architecture (and design) is not just a profession; it is a way of life. The commitment required is paramount as there is a tremendous responsibility to one’s self, the environment and the community at large…”