The Structure

Vandini Mehta, Rohit Raj Mehndiratta, Ariel Huber

ISBN 10: 3038600253 / ISBN 13: 9783038600251

Published by Park Books, CH, 2016

About this Item

This new book explores the work of Mahendra Raj, arguably India's most significant structural engineer. Born in 1924, Raj studied in Lahore and gained first working practice at the Punjab Public Works Department. He completed his education by working with engineering firms in the US and degrees he took from University of Minnesota and Columbia University, New York in 1955-59. He established his independent practice in New Delhi in 1960.Many of Raj's structures are recognised as monuments narrating the history of energetic nation building in post-independence India. Some of them are unique, such as the Hall of Nations and Industries (New Delhi, 1972) with its large-span concrete space frame, the Hindon River Mill (Ghaziabad, 1973) with a series of bowstring concrete arches. Especially during the 1980s, Raj designed further innovative, groundbreaking structures, most notably the NCDC Office (New Delhi, 1980) and the State Trading Corporation building (New Delhi, 1988).The Structure features twenty-eight of Mahendra Raj's buildings from all periods of his career in detail and richly illustrated with photographs and colour reproductions of archival plans as well as selected sections and plans. Essays by expert authors, interviews with Mahindra Raj, and an illustrated complete list of works round out this first comprehensive monograph on a pioneer of structural engineering.

Seller Inventory # LU-9783038600251

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Structure
• Publisher: Park Books, CH
• Publication Date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 3038600253
• ISBN 13: 9783038600251
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 1588 grams

About this title

Synopsis

The Structure explores the work of Mahendra Raj, India’s most significant structural engineer. Examining Raj’s sixty prolific years of practice, this volume looks at his unusually inventive and intuitive work and how he has offered pioneering engineering solutions for buildings in exposed concrete. As this book shows, many of his structures can be seen as monuments narrating the history of architecture in post-independence India.

The Structure features twenty-eight of Mahendra Raj’s buildings in detail through rich photographs and color reproductions of archival plans. Essays are contributed by Raj himself and by the architects Neelkanth Chhaya and Jaimini Mehta. Also included are interviews with Raj by the architect Sanjay Prakash and curator Hans Ulrich Obrist, a conversation with the architect BV Doshi, as well as an illustrated complete list of Raj’s works.
 
 

About the Author

Vandini Mehta is an architect and urban researcher. Rohit Raj Mehndiratta is an architect and urban designer. Ariel Huber trained as an architect and specializes in architectural photography.