Ever since human started to form societies and giving shape to their world, a particular art form known as architecture has existed. With modern architecture new designs are coming up and hitting the industry hard and absorbing huge amount money. In India, Metropolises have expanded progressively over the years. As the wave of industrialization and modernization has touched and covered our country, the lion’s share of village is shifting towards the town in search of perspective jobs. Hereby, it has created a situation of urban homelessness, a general lack of space and soaring land values and rentals. For this reason, rooftops are getting occupied by people and builders are designing new modernized rooftops which are being utilized properly.
Life is not always perfect, but your view can be!!!
If we keep our eyes over the pages of history of old India, we can see that, rooftops are very eventful, as people enjoy contemplating different scenarios of surroundings. Astronomical events are being enjoyed there, clothes are dried up, spices are sunbathed, men check out beautiful girls in the vicinity, may it be evening gossip session or drawing or painting or giving birth to famous novels, stories and other literary pieces, rooftop is serving a great deal.
Today amidst this hurly burly claustrophobic corporate life style, rooftop offers a wide array of fresh air to breathe in. To keep this charm alive and away from the fact that urban space-starved conditions force people to occupy rooftops too, a Barcelona group has been reclaiming them to hold public events since 2011. The idea of rooftops as mini homes and inspiration for artists are long seen in Mexico. Municipal Corporation of Mumbai is opening up rooftops for cafes and restaurants. Chennai has also witnessed rooftop football and cricket practice pitches come up.
Read further to know more about the architectural concept of Rooftop Designs-
Many have experienced the beauty of rooftops with great views, open air bars and luxurious escapes from the world below. But behind that unfiltered royal natural serene reckoning, the contribution of architecture science is undeniable. If you’re looking to use your building’s rooftop, here are few examples,
Art Lab, Chennai
It is a studio space enriched with concrete, metal, wood and gravel. Along with mini gardens, this space has fresh breath and a calming aesthetic, enough to spur the artists who spend time here. It was structured on 1800 square feet and located in a dense area with residences, small trade shops and a temple in its proximity. It was designed with as a light structure, a steel framework with windows, 4” thick aerocon walls and a 2” thick pre-cast concrete slab make up the volumes. The 14’ tall studio has large windows bringing in essential light for painting large canvases. There are five distinct workspaces in the studio, with each having different roof heights. Most spaces are lit naturally till about 6pm, until the sunset. The door handles, latch, hinges, furniture, upholstery and curtains are all exclusively designed for this building. Art Lab functions in abstract ways and the studio adapts and allows for all madness unobstructed.
Park Roof House by MDA Architecture
They design in order to create a serene, private space filled with greenery and light for the owners’ weekend retreats. The home utilizes creepers both indoors and over the façade of the home, secluding the house from the rest of the city but also interior spaces from each other. The vertical tiers of the garden are spanning every floor of the home, including the roof, adding a natural atmosphere and soothing greenish tone throughout the house, making it soothing and relaxing the entire family. On top of that, the terrace park on the roof is also somewhat functional, as it can transform into a botanic garden where vegetables and plants are grown for consumption and it is transforming the home into the ultimate secluded, inward-looking residential home.
“A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.”— Gertrude Jekyll
Stop SCREAMING; Start DREAMING, when you have a perfect rooftop!!
Designs of Terrace Garden
From the ancient Hellenic sources, we got to know that hanging gardens have existed at least since antiquity when the famous Hanging Gardens of Babylon were described by writers such as Herodotus and Philo of Byzantium. In today’s modern architecture, various designs of vertical gardens have proliferated alongside the interest in indoor plants and gardens. With each passing day, these designs of architecture is gaining popularity as it is disconnecting us from the chaos of modern city life and guiding us toward a better future, or at least a secluded, fresh, and natural outpost. These vertical designs simultaneously conserve space and embed the plants within the atmosphere of the house, ensuring the space feels as much like a garden as it does a comfortable home. Balcony Garden is nearly the same but it is used through container gardening, computerized trickle water system and other available outdoor furnishings. The structure ensures that, the space feels as much like a garden as it does a comfortable home.
5 Elements Landscape
An Architect farm in Bangalore is serving cost-effective, self-sustainable, eco-friendly, innovative ideas and to utilize the indoor & outdoor natural living landscape space. They are using natural materials like stones for the walls, chimneys and for creating pavements in a lawn. This is adding the whole structure more beautiful and appealing. They also design for the most beautiful and aesthetic gardens using wasted materials. They are guiding people to use proper and advanced style of rainwater harvesting by creating mound-like structure so that water or any such element does not hinder the outdoor.
Liquid Sky, Beyond Green, Ahmedabad
It is cozy 1000 square-foot refreshing rooftop lounge which is the perfect meeting place of sky and horizon carrying the hue of green nature. In this lounge every single thing or decorative element is minutely selected keeping in mind the sustainability and eco-friendliness. The benches used here are hand crafted as thin slices of wood carefully assembled with slits to cast its shadows and not appear solid. The blank walls are stucco plastered and have five bougainvillea planters with an orange door imply the color of dusk. The wooden deck is the vantage point overlooking the beautiful sunset on the horizon. The blue tiles on the floor is reflecting the vast sky overhead and replicating liquid sky as its glass finish nature is making it appear kinetic.
What to remember before going for Rooftop Renovation
Understand the purpose: While opting for rooftop modification, first and foremost thing we need to remember is that, how far it is purposeful. While it is undeniably true that, aesthetics play the major role, but one must always strive to find a purpose that the act of greening roof may serve beyond the ordinary.
Maintain Technicalities of Architecture: While retrofitting to old structures, or even newer developments the waterproofing layers, soil types, irrigation networks must be given due consideration and expert advice should be adhered to, for a better experience and long-lasting roofs.
Shading & Design: Whatever may be the purpose, shading design elements play an important plan in roof garden design. Always adhere the weather and temperature before selecting the orientation and materials. For example, in the hot climate of Ahmedabad, they serve as sun breakers and in Kerala as rain shelters on the rooftop gardens. So maintaining specification is of utmost importance.
Structural Integrity: The strength and integrity of the structure on which the roof garden is envisaged have to be prime consideration before heading towards any design or work.
Last but not the least, as the days are progressing, we are frequently searching for innovative ideas and methods which can cater our requirements and demands and at the same time work with efficiency and effectiveness and accelerate the pace of progress. Architects and interior designers are repeatedly searching for innovative ideas to take care of the Mother Nature. The global green roof market size was valued at USD 1.1 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17 percent from 2020 to 2027. Before designing rooftop or terrace or balcony gardens surely consult an architect and design specialist, so that your expectation get top-notch realistic touch and don’t end up creating mesmerizing mist instead of messy congested piece of architecture.
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