Bee for Bonnet

A recent interaction with an eminent architect brought into focus the bee in his bonnet – as he himself dubbed it. In his case, it was the insistence on vetting not just the quotes attributed to him or the factual accuracy of his inputs, but also the final text of the article and even the format of the pages that featured him or his firm.

Only on this condition would he consent to parting with images of the projects he has worked on, reserving the right to disallow publication if he did not agree with the presentation.

And yet, he insisted that he was one of the few designers in the country who actively forces magazines to be critical of his work! While one does commend him for the pride he justifiably takes in what he does, how about allowing writers, graphic designers and publishers to take pride in their work?

But this is not about the dichotomy inherent in such a stance – which I have encountered before in my interactions with other architects (who are wary about criticism, and mistakenly believe that design magazines are merely glorified albeit unpaid-for brochures).

It’s about the strange but sublime fact that when we have a bee in our bonnet, or a magnificent obsession, we push ourselves to extraordinary heights – as do all the architects and designers who spoke at the Axor Forum organised by Hansgrohe in Kochi.

In keeping with the company’s premium range of bath fittings, the focus was on ‘Value-added Design: Towards Responsible Sustainability’.

Before the inimitable French designer Jean-Marie Massaud staged his dramatic entry after being introduced by Philippe Grohe, the grandson of Hans Grohe, each of the Indian speakers – Karan Grover, Christopher Benninger, Pinakin Patel, Aniket Bhagwat and Tony Joseph – focused on aspects they considered sustainable, be it heritage, conditioning, surroundings or their oeuvre.

These passionate presentations on sustainable design were an apt prelude to the unveiling of designer bath fittings that offer augmented pleasure yet encourage users to decrease the use of water, a resource that is becoming increasingly rare thanks to the thoughtless manner in which we have been wasting it.

Similarly, scarcity of energy is an outcome of the consuming passion of the developed and developing nations. With the Indian summer upon us, this month we turn the spotlight on HVAC systems that can help to cool buildings without indiscriminately using the limited energy resources available to us.

Considering the climate change crisis the world is facing, it is fitting that sustainability remains the bee in the bonnet of responsible architects and designers. May their tribe increase!