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In the quiet bylanes of Krishnappa Garden, Bengaluru, stands a space that defies conventional categorisation.
At once a home, an architecture studio, and a repository of urban India's written history, the Urbs Indis Library embodies a dialogue between personal and public memory.
The Ground Beneath
To cultivate an intimate connection with the ground beneath, 90% of the 2,400-square-foot property is left unbuilt. A 20-foot-deep, six-foot-diameter open well, hand-dug in 2022 by the Mannu Vaddars community of traditional well diggers, serves as the sole source of water. A second well harvests rainwater and replenishes the shallow aquifer.
Flow State
Greywater and blackwater is treated on site through a reed bed system and bio-septic tank, and reused for irrigation within the property.
The Urbs Indis Library is water-self-sufficient in a city widely known for its hydraulic deficiencies.
The Art of the Monolith
A curved wall inspired by the well is composed of 320 granite blocks and 105 glass blocks. Each 6” x 6” x 10” translucent monolith has been handcrafted by fusing artisanal-cast glass and industrial-float glass, a process with no known material precedent globally.
More with Less
An architectural workspace doubles as a verandah for community activities, a studio transitions into a guest room, and the toilet is also a book-cover exhibition space.
Infrastructure such as pumps, panels, pipes and filters are displayed on the ground floor, a functioning gallery of technology. Every inch of the 1,935-square-foot structure hosts multiple uses to maximize experiences in minimal space.
The centrally-positioned staircase is an old-burma-teak wood structure that places books, ideas and the potential for discovery at the core of day-to-day life.
A Living Archive
The library houses more than 1,000 rare books on urban India, with special focus on Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai, and growing sets on Delhi, Kolkata, Patna and other cities. The repository is also home to the Patrick Geddes Reading Room, the largest compilation of books by and about the Father of Modern Town Planning, in India.
The collection is publicly-accessible Monday through Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm.
The Contemporary Cave
The upper floor living spaces are nestled within a cave-like lime-plaster shell, devoid of internal walls and doors, with a mirror-clad bathroom being the exception.
Level variations create spatial fluidity, enhancing ventilation and eliminating the need for air-conditioning.
The Tree House
Each volume within the elevated domestic space overlooks adjacent tree canopies.
Eight solar panels on the south-facing sloping-roof fulfill all energy needs.
“Thanks for the walkthrough Robert. Loved your energy and storytelling.
It felt like a sacred institution not just a house.”
- Kashyap Kothari, 28 January 2025
“What a delight it was to explore the @urbsindis rare book library! House in a home that celebrates the book collection, this is a cultural treasure for future generations.”
- Sarah Melsens, 05 February 2025
“Thank you for inviting us into your home. It was inspiring to see the limitless possibilities of material and space.”
- Sareena Khemka, 12 January 2025
"Thank you for opening your home for us to experience. I attended the walkthrough the day before and wanted to send a word of gratitude.
Your home has been crafted to great detail and each detail speaks volumes about the thought behind it without being loud. It was a pleasure to experience something so unique. Looking forward to experience more of your work. Thank you again!”
- Sneha Gprasad, 12 November 2024
“Thank you for allowing us to visit your masterpiece at the last moment. I just came home, closed my eyes and memorised the walk you gave. First of all, I must mention that you are a very good storyteller, I don’t know how you held our attention for more than three hours and each and every word of yours was a wealth of knowledge for us. I thought you would have been born in any Indian village because I always travel and specifically I see Indian village homes and I saw so many similarities to what you have achieved, but it was done with modern approach. I must mention that you changed my thoda perspective about architecture!”
- Gajanan Bhamare, 18 November 2024
“Thanks so much for taking us through the Urbs Indis space today. I'm sure you get this alot, but every corner is so intriguing (you can tell that Kairav and Bonnie are having the time of their lives there)!
I particularly love that gap between the landing and the steps leading up to the master bedroom - it kind of goes against everything traditional architectural education teaches you (I'm pretty sure seeing a detail like that in my drawings would get me a big red "redo" on my sheets in college. Well, at least in mine!)”
- Tirthika, 07 December 2024
"I was at the open house today. You've made me realise that genuineity towards one's process will eventually make things fall into place. Your sensibilities towards ecology, materials, site workers, services etc are very inspiring. Thank you for hosting today.”
- Omkar Gajare, 20 October 2024
"Thank you for the tour. Such a considered grace in all the details. Good architecture makes life easy and lively. Yours does both. Every section one stands in, one is connected to 2 levels / sections, if not more. Thank you for letting us in. It's a bit like Hotel California - one can check in but never leave:) We will all carry a part of it with us!"
- Ramalakshmi, 17 February 2025
“Thank you for opening up your home to us! It’s so refreshing to see a space free of our preconceived notions of a home, yet feel so homely.”
- Nidhi , 26 January 2025
“I like to believe that only an architect who is an introvert could have visualised such a simple yet beautiful home with so many quiet spaces and playful surprises waiting to be discovered at every turn. There’s so much of Louis Kahn I see in your home @urbsindis but also of a nature that’s quieter and softer.
So inspired! A must visit for people in Bangalore.”
- Geeti Barai, 15 February 2025