Exciting, captivating, creative, knowledgeable and passion-driven: that is how I would like to sum up my journey of some interesting years in architectural writing and journalism. During my final year in my Bachelors of Architecture, those six months when I took up architectural journalism as my elective were the decisive months that led me to be here. My undergraduate thesis also revolved around finding a new concept of architectural schools, which helped me dwell more into the roots of architecture and feel encouraged to write about it.
Architectural writing, an established profession in global markets, is now inching its way to becoming a mainstream profession in India, with publication houses, online portals, and design organisations seeking professionals skilled in architecture and writing. From times of being unexplored and unknown, it has grown to have carved a special interest in the minds of professionals and students connected to the industry. In response to my articles on the subject, the response that I have been getting from all over the world has been exciting; there are practising architects (many of them working with reputed firms), real estate consultants, structural engineers, professionals and students from the media and design industry, who want to take up this field, but due to lack of knowledge and exposure to the subject, are scared to take the plunge. (Vox Populi)
The field is not easy, but if one has the yearning, it can be fascinating and arresting. Architecture as a field is huge, and there is an unrestrained charm in discovering the many thousands of themes one can write about in this field.
Writing is my undying passion in life. With my contributions, I hope to bring a little more visibility to the budding and relevant profession of architectural journalism and raise its pedestal in India. My views on the subject have been assimilated in my published articles and many conducted interviews and podcasts. Some of the links are as follows:
- Editorial: Journal Issue on Writing and Literature in Architecture; Architecture Asia, July 2024 (June 2023 Edition)
- Interview; Madame Architect, July 24
- Podcast Interview; Big Fat Mantras, May 2024
- Podcast Interview; The Better Architecture Podcast, Mar 2024
- Interview; 361BIT, Dec 2022
- Interview; Arcohes, Dec 2021
- How to become an Architectural Writer in India: Growth Options and More; Careernuts, Sep 2021
- Architectural Writing Career Path: New Career options; Careernuts, Sep 2021
- Connecting writing to Architecture, Design and Building; ACES: The Society for Editing, Aug 2021
- Interview; U.N.H.E.A.R.D, 29th May, 2021
- Interview; World Architecture Community, Mar 2021
- The Art and Craft of Writing in Architecture; ArchitectureLive!, Dec 2020
- Interview, THE PLINTH, Newsletter of Faculty of Design; CEPT University, Nov 2020
- Writing in Architecture; Instagram Chat with Kunal Bhatia, July 2020
- Alternative Careers in Architecture; ArchitectsofWorld, June 2020
- Beyond Architecture: What is Architectural Writing; COA Social, May 2020
- Podcast Interview; Archgyan, Jan 2019
- Interview on the profession of architectural writing; Annual Journal of the Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology(IIEST), Shibpur – 2018
- A Dialogue on Architectural Journalism; Sqrfactor, May 2018
- Evolution of Architectural Journalism; Indian Arch: NASA 2016, Jan 2016
- Communication in architecture; Designers’ Style, Dec 2014
- Editorial: special issue on architectural journalism; Journal of Indian Institute of Architects, Aug 2013
- Architectural Journalism: A field waiting to be explored; Annual Journal (2010-2012) of RVCA, Bangalore, Sep 2012
- Architectural Journalism—The path less travelled; Sthapati 2011, IIT, Kharagpur
- Architectural Journalism—A viewpoint; Architect & Interiors India, Oct 2009
- Architectural Journalism: A field waiting to be explored; Souvenir, Silver Jubilee event of A3 Foundation, Chandigarh, July 2011
- http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2007/jul/17arch.htm, July 2007
- Architectural Journalism – A Proactive Approach; Scio 2007, Annual journal of CCA, Chandigarh, 2007
Apurva Bose Dutta