Raj Rewal


Raj Rewal is a leading Indian architect. A distinguished doyen of architecture from India, Raj Rewal has set global precedents with his urban narratives of design that have been integrally and richly steeped in their contextual inferences. The concerted juxtaposition of traditional concepts and contemporary syntax is reflective of his fascination for weaving expressions of heritage and history into a modern vocabulary, often revealing layer upon layer of intuitive interpretation and deep meaning. Effortlessly threading together episodes of design, he merges scale with surroundings and geometry with rhythm, binding space with structure and nuance, modulating form and light and coursing the exterior through the interior to create a series of interconnected experiences that are as distinct as they are together. Across a repertoire of residential, housing, public and institutional buildings, his work is characterised by concern for climatic sensitivity, humane architecture and the promotion of craftsmanship and new technologies.

Early life

Raj Rewal was born in hoshiarpur, punjab, India.

Career

Rewal lived in Delhi and Shimla from 1934–1951. He attended Harcourt Butler higher secondary school. Between 1951-1954 he attended the Delhi School of Architecture in New Delhi. After completing a degree in architecture in New Delhi, he moved to London in 1955 where he lived until 1961. He attended the Architectural Association School of Architecture for one year and the Brixton School of Building, London from 1956-60. GD Goenka University also honour architect Raj Rewal with an honorary doctorate at a special convocation organised by University in India Habitat Centre.
Raj Rewal worked at Michel Ecochard's office in Paris before starting his practice in New Delhi in 1962. Between 1963-72, he taught at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi. He opened a second office at Tehran, Iran in 1974. Among his better known projects are the Hall of Nations at the Pragati Maidan Exhibition Centre, demolished in April 2017, Asiad Village Complex, National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi; the Parliament Library in New Delhi and NCBS campus at Bangalore. In 1986, he became the curator of the exhibition "Traditional Architecture in India" for the Government of India organised festival of India in Paris.He also designed an architectural college in Rohtak and is head of members in academic council.

Awards


, Pragati Maidan

Projects