As per Sunitha Kondur, Co-Founder, Hundredhands Design, art is often ambitious, impractical, and meant to evoke emotions, sparking conversations without necessarily solvng problems. In contrast, design in spatial contexts of architecture, interior, urban, landscape, lighting etc balances between science, engineering, and art. What’s lacking is investment in public art, making it accessible to a broader audience.”
Siddhartha Rao, Regional Director- Bangalore, Edifice Consultants Pvt. Ltd, said, “Historically, art and engineering have been two extremes. Art originated as a means of self-expression, while engineering focused on documentation. Over time, these two disciplines merged, and beautiful structures adorned with art emerged like ancient temples and cathedrals. Modern buildings prioritize efficiency, with an emphasis on straight lines, glass, and rectangular blocks. While these structures are efficient, they often lack soul and identity.”
Kavita Sastry, Principal Architect, KS Designs added, “We don’t utilize enough the blessing of easy access to artisans & craftsmanship and the luxury of customization that Indians have. By promoting and celebrating our rich craft heritage, we can create more meaningful and contextual designs. As we’ve progressed, somehow, we’ve lost touch with India’s rich art and craft heritage. We as a community should revive and reconnect with it, incorporating custom-made, handmade elements that showcase Indian culture.”
Sarvdeep Basur, IALD, Principal, Lucent Worldwide, said, “Façade lighting makes buildings a canvas for creative expression, turning it into a piece of public art, attract-ng people and connecting communities. In India, there is a tendency of unnecessarily ex- cessive lighting that pollutes the atmosphere and kills the darkness without realizing that lighting designer canvas is actually the dark- ness itself. Easy affordability of lighting fix- tures makes it easy to overdo it and neglect responsible lighting design.”
For Swathy Sivaraman, CEO & Principal Architect, Storeyboard Design, art is an emo- tion that can be expressed in multiple ways, and a space is like an empty canvas waiting to be brought to life. “When designing, it’s about infusing a personality into the space. Art and design are intertwined and it’s for the designers to make design and art accessible to everyone, creating what we call “affordable luxury. Art doesn’t have to be expensive; it’s subjective, like beauty.”
Design must be functional, practical, sustainable, and commercially relevant. The question arises, where design lies on the spectrum between art and science
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