[Left] Southern Facade.

The rear side (South)

has a percolation pit filled with granite chips
and a water retention tank. The reason behind
choosing granite chips over sand was because they were economical and eco friendly
comparitively.
Also seen in the photo, are the green balconies with extensive vegetation that helps in
protection from the sun, and provides recreational space for the residents.

Luminosity

David Nightingale and Ganesh Bala

Residential Zone, Auroville
"Luminosity works as a model for
collective living, says David about
the housing apartments situated in
the residential zone of Auroville.
Luminosity is a rectangular block of 9
offices and 12 apartments. Completed
in 2010, the building adapts well to the
climatic context of the city, utilizing the

optimum orientation, wind direction

and its natural setting. The ground floor
of the three storeyed building houses
nine office spaces with common kitchen
and toilet facilities. The idea to avoid
creating residential units on the ground
floor was intentional, to avoid the
creation of private gardens and yards by
the residents. This was done to promote
the ideals of Auroville that it belongs to
nobody in particular. Both the upper
floors have six residences, each serving
as a self sufficient unit housing the

bedroom, kitchen and toilets, within a

vast flexible space. The green balconies
serve as the sitting spaces for recreation.
The project aimed to achieve quality
instead of quantity. Each residential unit
has been worked out intelligently and
adapts to the requirement of the users
effectively, with minimum alterations to
the design.

[Right] Front Yard. The front side is occupied

with pebble laid yard with selective plantations. The colonnade provides for a transition space between the yard and the office
spaces.
The front (North) facade of the building is
equipped with adjustable louvers. The louvers provide for the protection from heavy
monsoon rains as well as to facilitate wind
movement through the residential units. The
louvers can be manually adjusted in different
configurations at different angles.

[Green Balconies]
Extensive vegetation is used in the balconies
on the Southern facade. These help in
protection from the harsh sun of Tamil Nadu.
Native plants have been selected for the
purpose to help in climate adaptation.
The green balconies not only enhance the
aesthetic value of the building, but the wide
vegetated balconies also provide space for
recreation of the residents, and helps in
facilitation of wind movement. The projections
create smooth transitions between the hot
climate outside and the controlled indoor
environment, thereby resulting in the creation
of a climate responsive design.

[Left]
The balcony vegetation consists of flowering
and non flowering plants, that not only cool
down the spaces, but also enhance the aesthetic
appeal of the southern facade.
[Right]
The staircase is a striking feature of Luminosity.
Viewed in the photo, is the framing used on the
ground floor to enclose the staircase. Locally
available wood combined with aluminium is
used to create the light frame. The framing
creates a contrast with the white facade of the
building and stands out. Luminosity creates
connections between all the floors using two
such stairwells at each end of the plan.

[Stairwell]
One of the visual features that stand out in
Luminosity. The amber coloured wall that
supports the stairwell create a visual contrast,
between the staircases and the white facade of
the building. The idea of using contrast colour in
the walls was that the architect needed to make
clear distinction between the verticle circulation
space and the building.
Exposed poured concrete is used for the
construction of the staircase. The stairwell is
brightly lit using natural light achieved through
large continous openings in the southern
facade. The recessing of the staircase from the
main facade helps in cutting down the heat.

[Terraces]
The large terraces covered with galvanised iron
sheets make up the community spaces within
Luminosity. The building has three such terraces,
each used for interaction between the residents
or their guests. These terraces act as washing
areas with two community washing machines
on each terrace. They also provide for sitting
areas for the residents and their guests to enjoy
the breeze that flows throughout the year.
The terraces have rainwater collection system
as well as the defunct dehumidification system,
which failed partially due to technical difficulties.
The raised platform now acts as a seating. The
large terrace areas create an interesting space.

The provision of community facilities like

washing, dining (for gatherings) and reading
areas was to promote interaction between
the residents. The terraces also have storage
dedicated to each residential unit, which can be
used to install an invertor (as mostly do), or to
keep any other belonging in case the residents
run out of space in their apartments.
Each terrace has green areas and extensive
plantation to create a soothing environment. The
terraces provide scenic views to the dense green
surroundings of Auroville, enhancing the quality
of space available at these terraces. The concept
of making Luminosity a 'model for community
living' is materialized through these spaces.

[Left]
The foyer at the entrance serves as a transition
space for the visitors. The space also acts as an
extension to the living area within, divided
with the use of full length sliding doors. They
allow the extension of space when needed, and
also help in enclosing the inner area when it is
required to be protected from the outside harsh
climate, strong winds or during the time when
the nearby areas are sprayed by pesticides. The
foyer area thus adds to the usable area when
needed. The entire space is therefore made
flexible to use as they can be controlled by the
residents as per their requirement.

[Centre]
The image shows the vertical louvers installed on
the Northern facade of Luminosity. These louvers
are made adjustable to different configurations,
as desired by the users. When fully opened, the
residents can enjoy the exterior view of dense
green covers on the ground, thus integrating the
interior with the exteriors. The louvers also help
in facilitating the wind flow within the building,
and utilize the strong breezes during hot
summers for thermal comfort inside. The louvers
thus establish a connection of the resident living
inside with the outside environment through the
interaction with the movable facade elements.

[Right]
The balconies on the Southern side of the
building are equipped with extensive green
vegetation that lower downs the temperature.
The large overhangs provide shade for
comfortable use of the space. The sliding door
of the living area allow the users to extend the
spaces and use these spaces for recreational
purpose. Housed within the balconies are
these storage shelves (as seen in the picture)
that provide the users to put their neccessary
belongings and the wooden top serve as a
seating for the residents. The balcony therefore
becomes an extension of the living area.

[Apartments]
The 70 sq.m. apartments are designed to suit the
need of the residents and can be modified as per
the users need. The apartment is essentially a free
plan with the provision of bathroom and toilet in
the central area, and a kitchenette clubbed with
the living/bedroom area. The furniture is kept
minimal and a multiple variety of configurations
can be adopted, depending on the users. Shown
here is architect David Nightingales apartment
on the second floor, who opted to go for a simple
mattress laid on a concrete top in place of a
conventional bed. Hence, each apartment uses
the same space differently.

As seen in the image, the sliding doors of the

apartment when fully opened, provide an
unobstructed view of the green areas on the
ground, thus keeping the residents connected
with the nature, even on upper floors. "The
rooms get very airy when the doors are fully
opened, and we do not need even the ceiling
fans sometimes", David says about his apartment.
The apartment therefore adapts beautifully to
the climatic context of Auroville, and provides
flexibility in use and design to each individual
at the same time. The design being flexible and
adaptive, was the reason behind the fact that the
apartments are fully occupied.

The apartment also takes very good care

about the acoustical comfort of the users.
Each individual apartment is separated from
each other and is constructed of dense fly ash
bricks and cavity walls. The cavities between
the walls are used for water pipes and ducts.
The louvers on the front facade are also made
of sound absorbing material that reduce the
noises from outside and when closed during
heavy monsoon, help in maintaining lesser
noise inside. The floors also use inverted beams
above the slabs, filled with rice-husk ash to help
deaden sound-transmission vertically between
apartments