Architecture has always been a fundamental expression of mankind and also a reflection of a society’s economical, social, political and technological standing. Innovative engineering and artistic embellishments are often common parameters to understand a structure and define its merits. However, much can also be understood from elements that may be as inconspicuous and ordinary-sounding as its doors and windows.
At a first glance, doors and windows reveal knowledge about the fundamental constraints that may have shaped them: such as the climatic zone in which they were built; the structural know-how during those times; the materials that were popular and readily available or simply the presence or lack of wealth of their patrons.
Standing at a threshold, they not only govern physical factors like movement; tangible conditions like light, sound and air; but can also reveal some unsaid equations within communities, relations between their inhabitants or distribution of power within society.
Still images have the power to make one pause. And as one looks at these photographs, one can’t help but wonder more not only about the larger structures that these doors and windows are a part of and about the eras in which they flourished, but more importantly, also about the people that lived behind them or passed through them.
Though no people are in direct view, their presence within the frame cannot be completely ruled out. From obvious indicators such as drawn curtains to an unoccupied bench or an empty flight of steps – humans and their elements quite literally breathe a sense of life into these images.
Text And Photos By Kunal Bhatia
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