Our learnings over four decades of practice have guided us that judicious use of resources is our primary responsibility. Our designs will be more responsible if we contextualize them in all respects. The technologies we use must help to boost the sustainability of our designs and need not make a style statement. The third school of design, which draws from our traditional knowledge and wisdom, should not be overlooked. We learnt many of these principles on site from our crafts persons’ and master-builders who are the carriers of traditional knowledge gathered over generations.
The genesis of Unknown Crafts Persons’ (UCP) Trophy lay in these personal journeys during which we realized that these are invaluable assets which do not depend on textbooks or written words but are carried from one generation to another, from a “Guru” to a worthy “Shishya”. We became aware of its strength and enormity only after we started practicing as professional designers and not during our academic years. Unfortunately, even today, Design & Architecture institutes across the country do not expose students to this vast reservoir of traditional knowledge.
To reverse this trend and to ignite curiosity amongst students towards traditional Indian Crafts and building techniques, the idea of UCP trophy was introduced in 2012 at NASA by our Virasat Foundation. We realized that NASA was the ideal platform to reach out to the vibrant student community towards this specific objective.
The submission format was also devised to encourage first-hand experience of the selected craft by the participating student teams. The steadily increasing participation and passion amongst students each year is heartening and fulfills the purpose of Virasat Foundation in launching the UCP Trophy. We strongly believe this initiative to be common ground for all stakeholders to unite and create a platform that continuously engages in creating a future built on the foundations of ancient wisdom & traditional craftsmanship.
Abhikram is dedicated to responsible architecture, integrating sustainability, heritage conservation, and traditional wisdom into contemporary design. Our mission is to create contextual, resource-efficient environments that prioritize functionality, comfort, and cultural continuity.
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