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Klaus Philipsen
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Your work knows no borders—neither should your professional network. With an AIA membership, you gain access to the world’s largest, most influential network of architects and design professionals. And with more than 200 global chapters, you’ll find connections, opportunities, and support no matter where you are in the world. (American Institute of Architects website)
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Sri Lanka Architecture Conference 2025
[/td]"Design is where art and science break even" stated the slide of architect Fawad Abasi, Pakistan presented to an audience of international architects who had come together in Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital, for a conference titled “The Art within Architecture”. While the origin of this statement is dubious, the phrase accurately reflects the sentiment of many architects who possibly, more than most people, oscillate between their two sides of the brain, known as the "scientific" one processing information sequentially and the "artistic" one processing information holistically.
Thanks to the many connections of Country Representative of Sri Lanka for AIA International, Nela de Zoyosa, hon. FAIA, the conference could offer a stellar line-up of presentations from star architects such as Moshe Safdie, Billie Tsien (explaining the Barnes Museum and the Obama “library), Elizabeth
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Opening ceremony, lighting of the oil lamp
With AIA Int. Pres Cheong (Photo: Philipsen)
[/td]With AIA Int. Pres Cheong (Photo: Philipsen)
I want to share those discoveries in this article.
Sri Lanka Architects
Following the tradition that the host country highlights its own talent, the conference featured local presenters such as Palinda Kannangara, Philip Weeraratne, Russell Dandeniya and Channa Daswatte, (follow the links to see their work); all are following more or less the late architect Bawa's footsteps (more about him see below) in what is sometimes called tropical modernism.
For American architects used to design buildings around the world it is always a good experience to see how much talent is locally available in the respective countries and how they use local culture to enrich architecture beyond the typical international styles and fads. Palinda Kannangara allowed interested participants a visit to his house and office as well as his guest house, a hands on demonstration of "experiential architecture that hinges on simplicity and connection with the natural environment" (Palinda's website).
Why is there AIA Membership Outside of North America?
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Moshe Safdie addressing the conference
[/td]Nature in Architecture
Instead of "Art within Architecture" the Sri Lanka conference could have been titled Nature within Architecture or Architecture within Nature, accounting for the country and the region's bent to reflect the tropical climate and its greenery and biodiversity and meld it with architecture. Palinda Kannangara and Russell Dandeniya demonstrated this in contemporary buildings. The connection of nature and architecture is also obvious in the ruins of Anuradhapura, the ancient city and UNESCO World Heritage site which has been clawed back from the jungle after centuries of being forgotten and overgrown.
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Palinada Kannangara explaining his house at the
edge of a nature preserve (with alligators)
[/td]edge of a nature preserve (with alligators)
Nature in architecture was also the topic of several of the international presenters. Moshe Safdie, Billie Tsien, Ken Yeang and Simon Yu of Zadid’s office all let nature be part of their designs in various ways.
The tropical climate dominant in much of Sri Lanka (there are also more arid regions I didn’t get to see), with its abundance of rain and year-round moist warmth, has made the symbiosis of nature and structure an obvious option. No worries about frost or snow, not even about very powerful winds; it is possible to open up the envelope and create a seamless transition between the inside and the outside; an example of this is a hotel reception out in the open (albeit under a roof, of course), bathrooms or showers open to the outside, and endless variations of the patios and open courtyards which can also be found in traditional South Indian homes.
Geoffrey Bawa
The patron saint of Sri Lankan architects and an avid believer in the integration of nature into architecture was Geoffrey Bawa. Even 22 years after his death he dominated the conference in spirit. Participants learned about him during various tours to his houses and hotels and his Lunuganga estate.
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Bawa sculpture on the grounds of
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We visited several of his wonderful hotels (Bentota Beach, Heritance Kandalama, and Lighthouse), each uniquely defying the usual boredom of the standard-edition template of hotel architecture .
As with many star architects, Bawa leaves little to chance, even though the tango with nature always leaves an uncontrollable element. His hotels are full of his custom designs, inside and out, including the room furniture and details.
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Bawa House, living room
[/td]Bawa listens to nature as much as he imposes on it—lightly, though, he would have suggested. This can be quite literal, as when his remote resort hotel in Kandalama is built on a rock, its floor plan shaped by the outline of the geological formation. Imposing can also be scraping down a hill until the master could see a lake from his room. To the same end, he also created clearances and channeled breezes. Staying at the Kandalama hotel, I enjoyed the view over the lake, (offered from the shower as much as from the bedroom), the sunrise over the mountain, and the monkeys dancing around the hotel. Stepping at dawn onto the private balcony (no screen door, "nature is in such perfect balance here that we don't have many mosquitoes," Palinda Kannangara explained), there was the song of birds and no other noise other than the distant chimes of the bread truck. We had returned from an elephant safari the night before in one of those late monsoon evening downpours in which the open hotel seemed vulnerable. Men with large squeegees tried to keep the connecting hallways from becoming treacherously slippery. At the same time, hearing the rushing rain so close and still staying dry was also far more comforting than rushing down the usual carpeted hotel hallway. Clearly, this open architecture is in conflict with the invention of the air conditioner and with modernity's alienation from nature itself. Bawa followers are trying to avoid the energy footprint that comes from the separation of man from nature tat climate chnage has brought back into focus.
Sri Lanka and Nature
Sri Lanka rich biological diversity with its ecosystems, species and genes unfold in the island’s diverse array of forests, wetlands, coastal, marine and agricultural subsystems. (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy).
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Elephants in the Minneriya National
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With 80% of its lands in the hands government and the desire to brand itself to global tourism as pristine and a heaven of biodiversity and sustainability, the small island struggles to accommodate its 22 million residents. Nevertheless, the country managed to protect at least 30% of its land area under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (FFPO) of 1937 which creates national reserves and sanctuaries and the Forest Conservation Ordinance initiated in 1907. The country also has eight(!) UNESCO World Heritage sites, four UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserves, and six Ramsar Wetlands.
Still, the country wants to see more tourists. The tourist board had an emissary at the conference to entice foreign investment into hotels. A booklet with minute design guidelines was handed out, and the promise given that a local ombudsman would guide architects and developers through the maze of regulations.
I experienced one of the preserved lands in the quest to see elephants in the wild. A safari in the Minneriya National Park, a 8,800 hectares wildlife preserve with rock outcroppings, swamps and forest promises promise serenity and wildlife. This wasn't immediately obvious when we set off in a flock of diesel powered jeeps. However, our wildlife guide and jeep operator knew to separate from the others, and soon we saw elephants grazing quietly along the dirt path. Once the diesel was silenced the majesty of these large Asian elephants came into clear focus and it became obvious why these giants are so cherished that they are depicted in all of the temples. Of course, these safaris are problematic with the jeeps cutting trails this way and that. Allowed to dismount and climb up a large rock, silence enveloped me and a sweeping view of a vast green terrain opened up.
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Minneriya, the view from a rock shortly before a monsoon downpour
[/td]The elephants are not only worshipped and protected, they also create conflict when they walk off the park lands and trample the farms in the vicinity of the preserve, indicative of the problem of bringing nature and a growing population into balance. I got a first hand impression when on our return trip some of the elephants had ventured out on the road at night break. An oncoming driver was so afraid that he fearfully drove backwards to avoid irritating the beasts that could crush his vehicle.
Tourists (especially from the Netherlands and Germany) already flock here to embrace Dutch colonial heritage or some holistic vacations which involve popular elements of Buddhism, such as yoga and Ayurveda protocols. However, the total number of just over 2 million visitors per year is relatively small. By comparison, Ireland has three times as many tourists. Tourists and locals live in two different worlds: The tourist world is all English, all dollars, and has prices that are similar to what I see in the US. Visit local eateries and shops, and prices are very affordable for someone buying Rupees from Dollars or Euros. Tourists are also well protected: Ever since the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks that targeted spots frequented by tourists and killed chores of people in 12 separate bombing sites, tourists hotels are gated and secured. So is the access to the airport.
Tourists still have to get to their destinations or to the attractions; road travel is arduous. Peering from the backseat over the shoulder of our tour guide, I see the street scenes unfurl in endless repetition. The slow crawling bus, truck or tuk-tuk, the spurt to pass. The oncoming passing vehicles which block the entire lane until they pull back in the last second.
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The friendly kids offering us a seat after the car
broke down (Photo: Yew Kee Cheong)
[/td]broke down (Photo: Yew Kee Cheong)
Temples
The pre-conference day-tour was designed to give interested participants a sense of Colombo. We piled into a midsize tour bus and set out into the capital of which I had seen only the route the taxi had taken on the way from the Bandaranaike airport to the hotel.
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Modern Colombo
[/td]For us it meant: Shoes off and running barefoot across the temple yard that was also a restoration construction site with various temple pieces sitting on the ground. It was stifling hot and the inside it was not any cooler, in spite of the promise which the dark stone structure held. But carefully placed slot-like openings allowed not only a breeze but, depending on the position of the sun, also daylight washing over certain columns and sculptures for a spectacular effect that even special electric lighting could not have done any better. In Colombo we also saw the Red Temple (from the outside) and the Gangaramaya Temple.
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Our tour group in front of the
Ponnambalawaneswaran Devastanam Kovil
[/td]Ponnambalawaneswaran Devastanam Kovil
Very impressive and much, much older were the dome shaped temple structures (stupas) at Anuradhapura. We saw two of these ancient giant hemispherical brick structures that house Buddha relics in their center but are otherwise solid; one remained in its raw shape as it was wrestled from the jungle and the other restored with its splendidly white plaster covering. The stupas have four "entrances" which serve as shrines and places for the offerings of the worshippers.
Once again, we traipsed in socks on the burning hot stones around these domes, enlightenment out of reach and wondering in equal parts when we would be in the shade again and what it would have taken to build such massive structures in this accuracy without any machines. Naturally, the elephants came to mind.
We were once again fighting the clock, having packed too much into the day, and arrived at the World Heritage ruin city Polonnaruwa late in the afternoon. Harangued by a guy who absolutely wanted to sell us a tourist map of the entire island first for $25, and in the end for just $1 (we didn't bite) we rushed into the museum and out again because darkness began to descend and we wanted to see some of the larger ruins, such as what was left of an ancient library and the Royal Palace of King Parakramabahu, a once giant structure of many stories. When we wanted to go home, Nish, our well informed guide and driver gently pushed us to see Gal Vihara, one more Buddha site, entirely carved out of a single solid rock. It was almost entirely dark when we descended into a park were a lonely guard was still sitting in his shed, once again collecting our shoes. And there it was, a horizontal stone sculpture some 300' wide and 30' tall consisting of a sedentary, a standing and a wonderfully carved reclining Buddha. "A masterpiece of art of the ancient Sinhalese civilization", going back to the 11th century. In the center sits a carved out small cave-like place for worship and offerings. The entire scene sat there bathed in effective electric lighting waiting for us as the last visitors of the day.
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The Gal Vihara stone sculptures
(with their industrial shed cover for protection)
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I felt elated to have experienced this last exploration of the day but also guilty for giving all these almost a thousand year old testimonies of older civilizations so little time. Our pace reminded me of my earliest travels to Italy in 1977 when my girlfriend and I who were traveling at a leisurely speed laughed about the American tour buses with banners stating "Europe in seven days". Now I truly had become American myself. My fellow traveler, the President of AIA International Yew Kee Cheong hails from Singapore and followed the same, or an even more ardent pace, when he fielded numerous calls from Sri Lanka's representative Nela, advised about a Pritzker Prize application, and made a call to Mexico. The hectic schedule seemed out of place in Sri Lanka today as it was in the Italy of 50 years ago
As part of the three-day post-conference tour the three of us also visited the Sri Dalada Maligawa, another Unesco World Heritage site, and one of the most sacred pilgrimage sites due to the left canine tooth of Buddha that is enshrined here. The large temple is located in Kandy and sits inside the Royal Palace complex. At the time of our visit the temple with the shrine was mobbed by pilgrims who brought flowers and gifts and pushed hard to get a glimpse not of the tooth but the shrine in which the tooth is encased.
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Bringing the infants to the temple of the tooth
for a blessing
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Little babies were brought here for blessing, their urgent cries hovering over the packed mass of humanity. The temple became the victim of the varied history of Sri Lanka when first the Portuguese, then the Dutch destroyed it. The British left it alone, but it was also attacked by Tamil fighters in the civil war. every time it has been rebuilt. Its current incarnation dates to the 1800s.
In spite of recurring waves of interest in "eastern" religion that wash over "the west", knowledge and education about Muslim, Hindu (“May good thoughts come to us from all sides.”) , or Buddhist religion is sparse. Flying ETIHAB airlines via Abu Dhabi I din't know what to make of the screen notices announcing the next prayer times until I saw a seat neighbor moving his lips and bowing in his seat. Visiting many temples in India or Sri Lanka hasn't provided a lot of additional illumination. Maybe I should have read Siddharta by the German writer Herman Hesse, or begin reading the Veda.
Other Attractions
The tourist fascination with churches, temples and mosques during vacation is somewhat curious, especially for those who hardly ever set foot into those structures at home, no matter how famous they may be. I would have loved to also learn more about the port and was fascinated by the dense crowds pulsing through the narrow streets near the famous Pettah market; we slurped a coconut and got a few glimpses of the street life by walking towards where the bus could park. We also ascended to the viewing platform of Colombos Lotus tower, a 300m concrete landmark topped by a bulbous shape which contains a banquet hall and is reminiscent of a lotus flower. The bulb lights up in various colors at night and can be seen when entering the city from the airport.
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The 300m Lotus Tower
[/td]We traveled by bus to Galle, a 16th century World Heritage place founded as a Portuguese fortification and later taken over by the Dutch and developed into a picturesque town near sandy beaches on the south of the Sri Lanka island. The old town is so tight that our bus had to release us outside the walls. The Dutch Christian reformed protestant church of 1752 stands a monument of that colonial period. Together with hundreds of what seemed to be Sri Lankan tourists I took in a fabulous sunset from the top of the ring wall.
The ruins of Anuradhapura presented the northern end of our various excursions. They cover a large area and encompass many structures that consist mainly of their stone columns. The ancient city which was founded in the 5th century BCE and was the Sinhalese capital of Sri Lanka from the 4th century BCE until the 11th century CE, when invasions from South India forced the shifting of the capital.
We also visited another former capital, Sri Lanka's second largest city, Kandy, still known as the "capital of culture". It was the capital of Sinhalese kingdom, the last standing bastion until it succumbed in 1818 to the British. Kandy is a bustling city located along a river and artificial lake surrounded by mountains. Kandy features some buildings from the time of Queen Victoria such as the Victoria Hotel and a downtown chock full of small stores as well as a central market arranged around an atrium but spilling out into the surrounding streets.
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Vibrant street life in downtown Kandy
[/td]On this last day of our exclusive two person 3-day tour with its overly ambitious schedule we set off from Kandy to the Oak Ray tea factory, only 50 km, but tanks to mountainous terrain and the already mentioned arduous traffic, a journey of more than 1.5 hours. From the factory we could see the Ramboda falls and a spectacular views across the valley, the tea plantations, lakes and mountains. It was noticeably cooler here and it would have been lovely to see the falls from a bit closer up or visit the nearby village of Nuwara Elya, known as little England, but my travel partner had to be back at the airport by 9pm. We rushed through the tea factory and then had to take the route back down the mountain towards Kandy and then Colombo, not that far, but taking 5 hours, but getting us to the airport in time..
The Civil War
Criss crossing the island from the historic Portuguese fortification and tourists city of Galle in the south to the ancient ruins of Anuradhapura further north with Kandy and Colombo in between and seeing all the temples reveals little about the ardent civil war that has cost the lives of about one hundred-thousand people in brutal battles, air raids, massacres and terrorist bombings.
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Light house in Galle, a Portuguese fortification
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Transportation, China and the Silk Road
The civil war, the Easter attacks and Covid in the rear view mirror, the country is moving forward. Transportation is a major focus, be it for goods or people, on land, by sea or in the air. There are very few freeways but the endless stream of cars, trucks, buses, tuk-tuks and motor bikes throughout the day and a good part of the night slows productivity and wastes precious fuel. Gas costs three dollars per gallon in spite of the far lower incomes, the mean household income in 2024 was only $254 per month).
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The New "Silk Road" (Belt & Road Initiative)
[/td]More freeways are planned, and the Chinese are part of it. China is omnipresent here with Sri Lanka being central not only to the historic Silk Road but also to their new “Belt and Road”, an initiative investing in ports, roads and airports. Not all the Chinese money was spent fruitfully. The new Colombo Port City largely remains a 269 hectares field of dreams, empty land reclaimed from the Indian Ocean.
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High rise ruin stuck in limbo
[/td]I experienced China's presence not at the conference but also when chatting at a beach bar. The women next to me was part of a Chinese software company residing in a nearby office tower and was here to check on the company's work.
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The British left a functional railroad (as seen from
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[/td]the Lotus Tower)
The GDP is now growing at a high rate of 5% (2024). In spite of socialism, the benefits are not well distributed.with poverty being stuck at a 24.5% rate, suggesting that the poor continue to bear the brunt of the now relaxed austerity measures.
What a Tourist Doesn't Know
Whether as a tourist or as a conference participant, a brief visit of this small and populous island country provides only a very superficial and privileged perch of observation. My strongest impressions were the lush nature which impressed me from the first moment when I could glimpse it through the window of the landing plane as a startling contrast to the barren lands I had seen when flying out of Abu Dhabi. Wholesomeness, friendly people, excellent food, giant untamed Asian elephants, monkeys, and a capital city which looks far cleaner and more prosperous than what I had seen in Southern India were additional impressions along with some very impressive architecture by Geoffrey Bawa.
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The transfer of Buddha's tooth to the temple
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The official read is that Sri Lanka is a country where many cultures and ethnicities live peacefully together and wish each other a long life. (Ayubowan). The tour guides joked about how the many holidays of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians had bankrupted the country. Indeed, were it not for the police checkpoints and the severe hotel security one would never know that a bloody civil war ended only 16 years ago or that IS bombings shook the country only six years ago..
At AIA International one does not only get to be exposed to internationally well known stars but, thanks to the small scale gathering, friendships get formed when almost everyone meets everyone else during the sessions, over a beer, or at the tours that introduce the host country to the visitors. It is exhilarating o meet people from 20 or so different countries across all continents connected only through architecture and the English language. Scott Golds quips and fabulous on site sketches, Olusu Ola's large Nigerian contingent of visitors, Nadia Tromp's invitation to her homeland South Africa, Simon Well tirelessly explaining cricket, Alex Chuang's camaraderie, John Backman and I realizing we both "don't do jetlag", Yew Kee Cheong's companionship and international outreach, Palindra Kannangara's hospitality, Nishantha Bogahawattage's expertise, and Nela de Zoyosa's customization of our post conference tour are only a few examples of how human bonds facilitated enjoying a foreign place.
A particular treat beyond architecture, nature and culture of Sri Lanka was being able to speak in depth with Neil Leach, a British architect-philosopher, teaching currently in Miami and an expert in artificial intelligence, one of the presenters. He built up a strong online presence via his Digital Futures channel to which I listen as often as I find the time. I met Neil first in Hong Kong but in Sri Lanka we could discuss AI in some depth when we went together on a tour.
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One of the sketches drawn by conference participant
Scott Gold who attended a cricket game
[/td]Scott Gold who attended a cricket game
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Taxi transfer from airport: entry into Colombo
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I enjoy attending the annual meetings for the friendships they foster, the places I get to see and the enlightenment that comes from leaving the bubble of our daily lives. The Unites States are large, but now more than ever inward looking and often ignoring that there is whole world out there. International travel is an excellent cure.
Klaus Philipsen, FAIA
All photos copyrighted by author unless otherwise noted.
Business Global
A few weeks after my journey to Sri Lanka the island has been hit by another disaster, island wide flooding in the wake of a cyclone which took hundreds of lives significantly damaged the country's fragile road infrastructure and is estimated to have caused damages in the billions of US $ that will require international support to be afforded. (Link)
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Elizabeth Chu Richter, FAIA and Richter, FAIA
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From left: AIA President Lee, AIA International President Yew Kee Cheong and
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Inside Palinda Kannangara"s house and office (large ventilation windows)
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Courtyard in Bawa's former office, now a restaurant
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Independence Square, Colombo
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Buddha statue near Independence Square
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Sri Lankas new Parliament building outside Colombo
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Bawa client house (courtyard)
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Bawa De Saram house (courtyard)
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The Colombo Lotus Tower at night seen from the City of Dreams
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Massilmiliano Fuksas
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Colombo Municipal Council (the White House)
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Palinda Kannangara's music library of LPs. Above his use of concrete block
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Speaker Neil Leach
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Modern Colombo
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Safdie tower in Colombo
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Bawa estate Lunuganga
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Bawa estate Lunuganga
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Southeast coast near Galle
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Dutch Reformed Church (Groote Kerk) in Galle of 1755
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Old town Galle
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Dutch Reformed Church (Groote Kerk) in Galle of 1755
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Galle Fortifications (Dutch and Portugese)
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Hotel Kandalama: Preparing food on the open terrace
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Hotel Kandalama lobby with rock outcroppings
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Hotel Kalamanga
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Water cisterns and aqueducts, not only the Romans...
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Monkeys on the temple site
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Kandy Temple of the Tooth
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Kandy Temple of the Tooth
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Kandy Temple of the Tooth
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Kandy temple and palace district
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Kandy central market
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Ray Tea factory
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Tea testing
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Ray Tea Factory
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Gale Face beach in Colombo at sunset
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Old fashioned train announcement board at Colombo station
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Colombo in the early morning darkness
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