Pakistan vs. India...I Mean...Modern vs. Traditional Architecture in India PAKISTAN
Group members
- Nadir Rehman
- Alex Spaeth
Introduction
The idea of traditional ideas and modern ideas have always been seen as contrasting and opposite ideas. This is apparent in all countries, from England to China, from India to Pakistan, these ideas are still the same. Within these countries, this idea can be condensed even further into different subjects. One being architecture and the country we chose to highlight was the BEST country in South Asia (that also deserves its own unit in a World Studies class) Pakistan. The main reason we chose architecture is because it is a very broad topic and can easily be catergorize by either modern or traditional, so it is easier to show the differences and "tug of war" between the two clashing trains of thought. The reason we chose Pakistan is because it for one is a great country filled with culture and tradition.The other reason is that a developing country that is starting to use modern ideas in various places. The architecture of Pakistan is starting to design buildings that can rival some of the most modern buildings in Dubai of the UAE. Pakistan began with many traditional ideas and through those, they created many traditional looking buildings such as mosques, certain restaurants and more. But now, many modern ideas have began to migrate to Pakistan and are beginning to be utilized in Pakistan. Because the ideas of tradition an modern is heavily seen in architecture and is beginning to become prominent, we chose to highlight Pakistani Architecture. Traditional Pakistani architecture is based more off the culture of Pakistan itself and utilizes inportant parts of a native Pakistani's life, so these would include traditional renderations of mosques and places like that. Modern buildings in Pakistan are just beginning to emerge. Most of them have not even have been built yet, but there are numerous buildings that have been approved and are already being constructed or are planned to be created soon. These modern building incorporate metallic colors, multi-purpose uses, multiple windows and innovative designs. These ideas conflict and clash with the ideas of traditional buildings in Pakistan, now that the ropes are set, let the tug of war........ BEGIN!
The Final Showdown (Modern Architecture vs. Traditional Architecture)
M-Modern Architect (Son)
T-Traditional Architect with Traditional Values (Father)
M- My proposal for the new building has FINALLY been approved
T- Congratulations my son, which one of your building's proposals was approved? Was it that traditional mosque that I...I mean we worked on?
M-Well, umm....dad, I dont really know how to say this, I mean, I know I was supposed to turn the mosque plans in, but I decided to send in a plan that I made with an emerging modern
American architect
T- (Angry Accent Arises)VHATTT!?!? (WHATTT?!?!)
M- Come on dad, please drop the accent
T- CHUP BETA! (quiet son) vhy (why) vould (would) you do that to me. Ve (we) vorked (worked) so hard on this project, and now you throw that away for that modern vodern (a lot of
south-asian parent have a tendecy to randomly rhyme words for no apparent reason) trash.
M- But dad, you need to hear me out, I didn't forget about what ve, I mean we worked on. I created a more modern place with multi-purpose
T- This is not sounding like vhat (what) we created.
M- I created a super center. It includes a mall, hotel, various sports area and....
T- NONE OF OUR IDEAS ARE INCLUDED!
M- I was going to say that the main attraction was the mosque we created
T- Vow Bhai Vow (Wow Bhai Wow with an accent; A commonly used statement meaning wow)! I am proud of you son!
M- Except we put a modern twist on it by...
T- NO! NO! NO! You cannot make something this important in our traditions modern, you vill (will) ruin the house of Allah (Swt). You cannot put a traditional idea such as a mosque vith (with)
your modern little fantasies. They cannot fit together. Vhat (what) have these crazy western modern architects done to my choota sa beta (my little son)...
M- But dad, you don't get it, adding modern touches makes it BETTER...
T- NO! nothig good has ever come from these "modern" idears. It is much beter to stick to our tradition an vhat (what) we know.
M But please just lisen to what I did.
T- Ok. But I tell you nothing good ever came from this modern stuff.
M- Using modern ideas, we began adding more external ornaments such as pillars, and maximizing room inside the mosque itself by utilizing more modern and sturdier material for the
foundation of the building and lastly, the outside and inside include more metallic colors to add more beauty to the overall mosque and there is an ayah (verse) from the Quran as the
centerpiece of the mosque. It may not be traditional, but it sure does make a better mosque than some of the things we put in our traditional mosque. And don't worry I made sure we
included a lot of the traditional aspects of a mosque you included in our original design.
T- (Accent Fades) Well son, maybe there can be an agreement between modern and traditional architecture. Can you please teach me some of these modern ideas, I've been asked to create a new building in Karachi.
M- Of Course. Lets go out for some Tikka (traditional pakistani food) and discuss our building plans
T & M- (Walk Away Together)
****This dialogue shows the many differences between not only second-generation Pakistani-Americans and Native Pakistanis, it also shows the differences between the two different types of architectures, traditional and modern. At the end of the dialogue, it shows that both traditional and modern aspects can fit into one piece of architecture and when this happens, it is usually better than only concentrating on one idea of traditional or modern. There is a tug of war present in all arguments between traditional and modern values and ideas, but there is always a midpoint between them too, and this is show in this dialogue.
The Visual Tug of War
Modern Building: This building is set to be built in Islamabad, Pakistan. It is called the Centaurus hotel and it will incorporate many aspects of modern buildings once it is built. Not only does it have many uses, including a hotel, shopping mall, offices, etc., it also has one of the most modern looking external designs. It turns four different buildings into one by using a wave of foundation, which is also the roof of part of the hotel. This building also has a lot more modern necessities that is usually included in modern buildings, this includes a heli-pad and parking center. This is probably one of the most modern buildings set to be built in Pakistan
Traditional and Modern Building: This is the Shah Faisal Mosque that is also located in Islamabad very near the spot where the Centaurus Hotel is set to be built. The two buildings may be very near, but the ideas they exemplify are very far apart in theory. This is a more traditional building because it is based on a traditional aspect of Pakistani culture. Also, the building contains more traditional architectural themes seen in many older mosques. This mosque utilizes a traditional part of mosques, the pillars and barrier. But it also has somewhat of a mote modernd twist on it. it is built based on modern achitecture but traditional religious values. But it does still serve its main purpose as a house of worship for Muslims in the area.
URL Citations
- Centaurus Hotel: http://www.skyscrapernews.com/imagesall.php?ref=692&idi=Islamabad+Pakistan+Begins+Centaurus+Work&self=nse&no=1&selfidi=692IslamabadPakistanBeginsCentaurusWork_pic1.jpg
- Shah Faisal Mosque:http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031123/world5.jpg
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