We are back !! After another sojourn to NY this time with a side trip to California as well ! A lot has been keeping us occupied at Nivim. Soon to follow this post are posts on the final stages of the construction at Nivim, the flooring, bathrooms, landscaping, etc etc...

Photos from top-left: Julia Pfeiffer Burns Park at Big Sur, CA; Fresh organic carrots; Lavender fields, Sonoma, CA; Wildflowers, Pacific Coast, CA; Vineyards, Sonoma, CA; Bright organic rhubarb; Artichoke flowers; and Cabin in the redwoods, Big Sur, CA

We are elated to present to you pre-final photos of Nivim Goa from last month.

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Shot in April, these photos show the house just before the final finishing stage. We began construction on the house end of January 2011. The core principles of the house is to promote architectural excellence and environmental sustainability.

We are now about 2-3 months away from finishing. We are aiming for the 'Gold' level green homes certification from the Indian Green Building Council and will be the first home in Goa to be certified. Read more on the green initiatives at Nivim Goa.

As for architectural excellence, we have attempted to create spaces that are inspiring, use natural materials and design building openings that all together enhance the user's relationship with the environment. Read about our design concept.

The photos above give the feel for the raw architectural space and materials, and show the bare building that is not hiding behind any fancy finishes or landscaping.... Do see the pictures and we will let you be the judge of how far we have succeeded in achieving our goals.

See all the design and construction updates for Nivim Goa.

All photos courtesy Sanjeet Wahi, Photographer, Delhi.

Old teak wood beams found with a Mumbai vendor

While using wood, an important question for us was to determine whether we would consider wood to be a sustainable material or not. Wood is a naturally occurring renewable material and hence can be considered sustainable. The issue is the over-logging of forests worldwide leading to loss of critical forest cover and all the resulting problems of loss of habitat, environmental disastors and climate change. This problem can be somewhat overcome by buying wood that is certified to come from forest following sustainable forest management practices. When we began our search for wood, we did our research and found that there was only one certified plantation in India that sold only rubber wood. Most other certified wood is actually imported to India. This results in spending large amounts of energy in transporting the wood across continents to finally arrive in India.

The solution we arrived at was to use reclaimed wood, that is to reuse wood reclaimed from old buildings, bridges or railway sleepers in our building. For this purpose, we conducted several trips to Delhi and Mumbai and identified a vendor who promised us a stock of old Burma Teak wood that had been used in buildings during the British times. The deal was struck, advance payment made but then it turned out (which happens often) the vendor had over-promised and would under-deliver…. Stuck at the last minute, we were forced to make a decision while keeping cost, time and quality all in check. The decision we made was to use virgin Burma and African teak wood in the project.

Luckily, we were able to source some old teak and matti (local variety) wood from Goa itself. We bought wood that was used in old homes as roof rafters and floor beams. The advantage of using old wood is that it has completely dry or seasoned, has achieved its equilibrium moisture content and therefore presents no danger of bending or warping. And once you shave off the top weathered layer, the wood looks and behaves as good as new.

Stack of old reclaimed wood brought to the site

Carpenter working with old wood to remove nails or any sections that are spoilt

Carpenter working with old wood to remove nails or any sections that are spoilt

Cutting the old wood to remove the outer weathered layer and to make usable sections

Cut old wood, look as good as new !

The challenge of using old reclaimed wood apart from sourcing it is actually working with it. The wood from roof rafters often has nails some of which have lost their heads, and therefore it is difficult to predict where there is a nail within the wood section. This creates a problem while cutting the wood, as an unexpected nail can break the blade of the saw, leading to additional cost and time lost in replacement.

In addition, a lot of time is spent is preparing the wood, in sorting it based on size and variety, cutting and disposing any sections that are damaged and also carefully examining the wood to remove any nails or other intrusions. This takes time and labor cost. Also, as one would expect carpenters would much rather buy new wood and straight away begin work rather then spend time in preparing the wood before crafting it.

In any case, we went through all the motions of figuring out the process and executing it. The result is some beautiful wood that we are reusing and saving a few trees. Also important to note is that in the end, the cost of using old wood come to be more or less the same as new wood due to the additional cost in working with it and high wastage but ofcourse there are significant environmental savings that are difficult to quantify.

Back to Part I - Romancing Wood, an introduction to our choice for using wood, and Part II - Seasoning and treating wood

Wood stacked outside the kiln ready for drying

We did a lot of research and determined best practices while using wood. To avoid the common problems with wood, we sourced tree logs that had been lying with the saw mills for a year or two so they were air-dried. We then took this wood and got it kiln dried (or seasoned). In this process, the wood is kept in a kiln for 15 days at controlled temperatures to dry the moisture in the wood. Kiln-dried wood is dried to a moisture level of around 15%.

Wood will always retain some level of moisture, the moisture content is highest when wood is freshly cut and it reduces as wood dries over time. As wood dries, it shrinks and that results in the bending of wood. If the moisture content in atmosphere is high then wood may absorb some of this moisture and expand. Hence, the jammed doors during monsoon. But over time, wood reaches an 'equilibrium moisture content (EMC)'. Once this point is reached then wood does not react noticibly to changes in moisture content. Kiln drying accelerates this drying process. EMC varies with type of wood, local weather conditions, etc. A moisture content between 12-15% is found to be close to EMC in areas of high atmospheric moisture.

Photo of the kiln while it is drying our wood inside

The temperature controls at the kiln

Engineer at kiln checking the moisture content using a moisture meter

Now for wood that is used outdoors there is always the danger of rot. This danger is most prevalent if wood is used close to the ground level where it can potentially be prone to water logging. We have dealt with these problems by avoiding the use of wood for decking on the ground and providing ample slope elsewhere to prevent any water logging.

Then there is the danger of attack by termites and other wood boring insects. This problem is somewhat negated by use of stone/ concrete foundations and plinth, materials that termites cannot pass through. In addition, we have chosen to use primarily teak wood that is known to be naturally resistant to termites. As an additional layer of protection, we are treating all our wood with rot and termite resistant chemical before use in the project.        

Finally, there is the important question of sustainability while using wood. More on that in Part III of this post. Back to Part I with introduction to our choice of using wood.

Now in the final stage of construction, we are concentrating on final finishes. That means that our civil work is done and so is most of our woodwork. We are now laying the floors, polishing the wood, tiling the pool and getting ready for planting.

A significant milestone is completing the woodwork for the main house. As you can see in the more recent photos of the house, we have used wood quite liberally. The main reason is the design of a very open home that allows the indoor to connect seamlessly with the outdoors. The resulting large openings in the house (every room in the main house has two walls that completely open) need frames and doors, hence the large scale use of wood. Also in the construction of the house, we have tried to reduce the use of RCC due to the carbon emissions associated with cement production. In addition, typical RCC construction over large spans tends to result in sections that are thick and heavy. Instead we wanted a structure that looked light and was able to blend into the surrounding and not be a big block of concrete that has been dropped thoughtlessly on the greenfield site. The resulting material of choice was structural steel and wood.

View of the LHS bedroom with the woodwork for the screen, door opening, roof and chajja

View of our amazing carpenters fixing the screen louvers in the front and back of living room

View of LHS bedroom with the sliding doors all in Burma Teak

I am a sucker for wood. Its warm golden colour with the natural grain adds a rustic quality to the design that is hard to replicate with another material. Aluminum (which was the other material that we considered for doors instead of wood) on the other hand feels relatively cold to touch, look and feel. Wood ages well, it grows old with elegance. 'Fetishisation of wood' was a trend that stood out at the Milan Furniture Fair,this year where designers promoted the use of natural finished wood rather than lacquered or painted finish. Another interesting trend that is catching on worldwide is the use of reclaimed wood, recycling the material instead of using virgin wood to avoid the cutting of the fast disappearing forest cover.

View of stacked doors waiting to be installed in various rooms

Of course wood is also a very temperamental material to use. It tends to change shape as it dries, is attractive to insects and can rot with excessive moisture. Wood is most feared when used outdoors. But then it has been the material of choice for building high-end boats and bridges for ages. All in all, I have found that wood is often mis-understood. It is the material that has been used the longest in construction. There are the obvious dangers of using wood but these risks can be mitigated by understanding it's properties and working with them. Using wood in construction is like using silk for a beautiful couture dress, there is a specific way of working with the material and the effort is worth it as the result can be priceless.

Look out for: Part II of this post where we will discuss our efforts to treat wood, and Part III where we discuss sustainability aspects of using wood.

Last week the beautifully restored Reis Magos Fort was opened for public. Below are some pictures. The highlights are the fort's pristine condition post-restoration, its siting and views. I love the feel and texture of laterite stone with whitewashed walls, clay tile roofs and wild greenery, all aspects that I believe are so quintessential to Goa.

The fort is located on a hill and accessed through a ramp and two narrow staircases, all executed in beautiful laterite masonry. Laterite is the local stone and most common building material used in Goa.

I write this post while hoping that we can continue to maintain this treasure and not let it once again fall into disrepair and neglect.

Country tile roofs of the building inside the fort walls

Gorgeous earthy central courtyard

View of Reis Magos church and cemetary from the highest point of the fort 

View of the river Mandovi from the fort

Narrow stairs leading to the fort will beautiful terraces below

Fort wall with lookout station

We recently crossed another project milestone by completing the first design stage documentation towards the Green Homes certification awarded by the Indian Green Building Council

We are targeting the gold level certification and will be among the first green certified homes in Goa.

Some of Nivim's main green features are listed below. We will try to do detailed write-ups on some of these in future posts.

Trees and preserving site’s unique features

– Our project site had 14 existing trees before construction and we preserved these trees and incorporated them in our design. The design also retains nearly 35-40% of the site as natural landscape. New landscape is planted with majority local species to have minimal need for irrigation water use.

Building orientation and design

– The main house building is oriented with the longer façade facing North-South to minimize direct sun exposure on east and west where the sun is lower increasing heat absorption. Ample shading devices have been planned to further reduce sun exposure and heat intake.

Daylighting and cross ventilation

 – 100% of living spaces are designed to be adequately day lit with ample shading and openings for cross ventilation. This eliminates the need for any artificial lighting or mechanical cooling during the day saving energy use and providing healthy indoor air quality.

Energy

 – 100% use of solar power for water heating. Use of 3-star energy efficient refrigerator (40%less energy use) and 5-star rated air-conditioners (25% less energy use). Use of solar control glass on east and west façade to reduce heat absorption to indoors.

Cool Roof

– 75% of roof is finished with highly reflected material to reflect sun’s heat thus help in maintaining lower temperature in living areas below.

Two openable walls per room provides 100% daylighting and cross ventilation

Water

 – We are collecting 50% of rainwater runoff from the roof and storing it for future use for landscaping and for swimming pool use. Prioritized use of low-flow fixtures in the bathrooms saving 30% of water without having any impact on perceived flow of water and use. We are treating 100% of our grey water* on-site to be used for landscaping thus further reducing pressure on municipal water resources.

* Grey water is all water from bathrooms and kitchen drainage except water from the toilets. Grey water is filtered on-site through a root zone water treatment system.

Permeable paving

– 75% of site’s paved surfaces are built using permeable paving to allow maximum percolation of rain water back into the ground.

Construction Materials

– Use of over 50% building material from within 500kms of the site to reduce embodied energy spent in transporting materials over long distances. Encouraged reuse of salvaged building material as well as building material with high recycled content such as fly-ash bricks, fly-ash cement, recycled tetrapak boards, aluminum and reclaimed wood. Reducing the use of cement** in construction by building load bearing walls and filler slabs. 

**Cement production is known to produce large quantities of greenhouse gases, for every ton of cement produced one ton of GHGs are released in the atmosphere. GHGs are known to be the leading cause for climate change. Read more here.

Low VOC paints

–Use of low VOC external and internal paint to reduce exposure to hazardouschemicals to humans.

List of green certified buildings in India, http://www.igbc.in/site/igbc/certifiedbuilding.jsp

I am not the type to be much into celebrity homes... but this one caught my eye primarily because its theme is so similar to our own at NIVIM Goa. The house is designed to connect the indoors with the outdoors and provide a peaceful space to escape, inspire and celebrate with family and friends.

Courtney Cox's home was the cover feature in Elle Decor, US Edition, July/ August 2011. All photo are courtesy of Elle Decor Online. See link.

The house is located in Malibu. One of the architects for the house says that 'Malibu is all about being outdoors'. Exactly the same in Goa...

The article talks about how the house looks out over the deck and pool and beyond. The architects designed the spaces with a sense of openness with glass walls that flood the rooms with light. The glass doors, once opened, makes one feel like they are completely outside. 

The result is a space that is chic and unquestionably luxurious, yet earthy, cozy and unpretentious... Its interiors were kept neutral and bare that keeps the focus on the outdoors. 

Sounds familiar doesn't it !! Read about our efforts to design NIVIM to seamlessly connect the indoors with outdoors. See link. 

It is not a surprise that the concepts in the house above and our efforts are so similar. In my mind, there is a distinct vocabulary for building in the country. It stems from the underlying reason for people to choose to live in the country, clearly to 'reconnect with nature'. And with that concept in mind, the architecture has to be as much about the outdoors as indoor, if not more. We are loving our journey to give NIVIM its special character built around its site and surroundings. The house as a result is shaping up to be quite fabulous and heart warming. I promise updated pictures soon.

Living area adjacent to the kitchen

Sit-out with large glass walls

Master bedroom that becomes a part of its deck and views beyond

Outdoor bar and galley kitchen

Earthy bathrooms

The entrance alcove dictates the the earthy and natural style of the house

The pool and deck looking over to the sea

Outdoor dining

Undeniably the most precious space in the house, a pavilion set into the scenery with seating around a fireplace. As per the article, Courtney Cox has her coffee here everyday...I can see why !

After food, fashion and art, finally I move on to architecture, clearly my favorite indulgence...During my short last visit to New York, I had the opportunity to hear two great architects talk about their work in the recent years, Enrique Norten from Ten Arquitectos and Charles Renfro from Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

Images of One York Street in New York designed by Enrique Norten

Enrique Norten is a Mexican architect with several design awards under his belt. I have always admired his building - One York Street in TriBeCa in New York (We have at one point seriously considered living in it too !!). The building incorporates and rises out of two 19th Century industrial loft buildings. I love the way the new building has a distinct identity but did not demolish the old buildings or start from scratch to achieve that distinction. The building while preserving the old, still manages to look extremely contemporary and modern. One York is located at a busy street intersection and in between 3-4 neighborhoods. The building does a great job of providing a fitting landmark at this junction without being gimmicky. It is just a piece of very good and slick architecture.

We have spoken about Diller Scofidio + Renfro on this blog before as they are the visionary designers of the magnificent High Line. As a side note, Diane von Furstenburg who we spoke of earlier (Part I of this series of posts) is one of the largest benefactors of the High Line project and occupies a sexy building right next to the rail line. (Read about it

 here 

). It is an old warehouse with a contemporary steel and glass addition on the top. This rooftop addition houses DVF's bedroom. The funky building has a quirky mural on a 3-storey high side wall (a clever piece of branding, I say) and is also lit up in multicolors after-dark.

DVF's live-work loft with the rooftop glass addition along the High Line in NY (

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Rooftop addition at DVF's live-work warehouse along the High Line in NY 

Charles Renfro spoke about the firm's constant effort to integrate public space into their buildings. Examples include the new Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, where they integrated the public harborwalk into the building by carving out a public amphitheater space at the ground level of the building; the Image and Audio Museum in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil where they have designed the front elevation as a public ramp-way that takes people up to the building allowing a user to look into the building, its exhibits and activities; and the addition to the Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center in New York, where they sliced the building to create a public amphitheater seating while exposing the studio spaces providing a barrier free view from the street, once again making the public a part of the building and its activities and vic-a-versa.

Very inspirational out-of-the-box thinking... I love them for slicing and dicing the buildings while dissecting the conventional concept and perception of particular building. Admire them for their ability to step back from the obvious and give each building a new identity. Applaud them blurring the lines between private and public; and making buildings open up to the city.

The Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (

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The proposed Image and Audio Museum at Rio de Janiero, Brazil (

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The proposed Image and Audio Museum at Rio de Janiero, Brazil (

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Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center in New York (

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YUMMM !! Six different Bagels with six different toppings (above) and fried Montanara pizza (below) 

Just returned from a quick whirlwind tour of New York. Along with my usual New York fix of bagel and cream cheese, pizza (this time it was the fried Montanara !!) and beer, J Crew and Anthropologie, I put in the needed effort to expose myself to cutting edge design and designers. This is my way to continue to be inspired. Nothing seems impossible when one is in this great city and one does not have to look far for inspiration. There is a more than average concentration of talent and creativity here. I aim to soak in as much as I can whenever I am back.

Dress by Norma Kamali, Oscar de la Renta and Rudi Gernreich (Photo Credit)

First, I made it to a great fashion exhibition commerorating designs and American designers that have had a notable impact on fashion in the last 50 years. The exhibition was conceived by Diane von Furstenberg, who is one of my favorite designers. I love her use of bold colors and playful prints while keeping the outfits fairly simple and elegant in cut and design.

Photo 1: A dress by Halston, Photo 2: (from L to R) Dress by Thakoon, Yeohlee Teng and Proenza Schouler, Photo 3: Dress by Sidney Wragge (Photo Credits: Link)

The exhibition ranged from fairly simple clean designs to the very detailed over-the-top designs including the gorgeous Norma Kamali, black parachute cloth and feather jacket, skirt and turban, circa 2011, and Oscar de la Renta, silk taffeta gown with black Guipure lace bodice, spring 2012 (shown above in photo).

Peter Woytuk Sculpture at Columbus Circle with the Museum of Art and Design in background

Next was a walk along Broadway on the Upper West Side to see some site specific sculptures by Peter Woytuk.These sculptures are playful and whimsical. They comprise of oversize animals and fruits in the little green strips or plazas along busy Broadway. They are great as they bring a touch of surprise to the commuters and travelers. They appear out of nowhere and their scale, size and sometimes color forces one to stop and take notice. It is a way for nature to reclaim the city while providing the busy New Yorkers with respite from the everyday....

Pair (Spooning) at 107th Street

The Acorn Bench at 73rd Street

My favorite, Kiwi at 72nd Street

My favorite was the giant kiwi at the 72nd Street station. At least 5meters in height, with an equally large belly, this bird in bright blue sits on its butt and seems to be very happy ! The sculpture somehow made me think of the animated movie 'Happy Feet' and I imagined this kiwi skidding through ice and having the time of its life....screaming 'wooohooooo'!!...... Such is the power of art, it can transport the viewer from a dry hardscaped train station to icy glaciers and feelings of childlike exhilaration !

More on architecture in Part II, to be continued...