Ar. Jyoti Motha

Completing 24 years of practice, Ar. Jyoti has built her practice on her own terms taking up quality work she is more comfortable doing, an average of 8-10 projects a year with some projects lasting upto 2 years. She has worked on a number of factories, schools, office interiors, churches and hostels for children predominantly, along with residences.

However the years 2004-2007 were the most frenzied yet stimulated, with the post Tsunami work she took up in association with the ‘Tuticorin Catholic Diocese’, where she took up around 40 projects.

A home for the “Little sisters of the poor” has been her most challenging on an emotional scale in terms of identifying and working on the little details in the lives of the elderly people who would occupy the space. Details outside the primitive standards of ramps and anthropometric details and more to do with their elemental functions. Details like a higher than average railing, which may sometimes help thwart suicide.

Another, though challenging but more awe inspiring project she has been working on is the “King’s Matriculation school and residential campus” in Valliyoor, Tamilnadu. She has been working on it for a consistent period of 16 years and through the years has evolved a campus on 45 acres of land with number of schools, hostels and sports amenities. A project whose evolution she credits to the amazing clients who came back to her master plan for consecutive expansions over the years.

Taking inspiration from her ‘Gurus’ as she calls them, F.L. Wright and Geoffrey Bawa, she has conceived her own style of work, which are based on simplicity and utilitarian concepts with a strong influence of Zen, and is not too fond of classical details. She further credits Mexican Ar.  Ricardo Legoretta for her modern and futuristic ingenuity.

“Listening” according to Ar. Jyoti is most important, nevertheless she believes, “architects also need to draw the line at some point”. Some clients in her experience are known to have gone overboard with run of the mill vastu consultants and in such predicaments it is the duty of the architects to explain the right things to client so they don’t end up with something they are not proud of.

On the other hand, the client also needs to understand and trust the architect’s experience. Trust them to know the flow, utility and value of placement and proportion of certain spaces. Clients and architects need to come to an understanding. Challenges, she asserts, are few when clients are very clear headed. As long as the client’s requirements and budgets are clear, things tend to run quite smoothly.

Ar. Jyoti believes globalization has only had a positive impact in the field architecture and is to be embraced whole heartedly. It has enabled designers from around the world to share their works and derive motivation from each other, inculcating a passion to share with the world and not be exclusive. At the same time encouraging the local artisans and keeping in mind the local environment is more crucial now than ever before.

She recommends up-and-coming architects to be clear about the style and kind of architecture that inspires them and trains themselves for it under an established architect who specializes in the style for the first two years after their graduation. The initial years she admits are atmost important as they are the most influencial phase for an architect.

Not big on advertising, Ar. Jyoti acquired most of her projects through word of mouth. She worked on the policy of ‘Not taking up more than she can handle‘ at any given time, sustaining her practice on a small scale, preferring to keep it that way. She currently aspires to take up a large community housing project as the intricacies of designing such a complex space would be engaging and rewarding.