Our visit to Lunuganga- Geoffrey Bawa’s architectural residence in Sri Lanka- Recreating our moments 9.1!!
A treasure in the island, Sri Lanka- Must visit (Jan 23rd 2022)
On a bright Sunday morning, Anupa and Sachin woke up at around 8 am. Anupa wasn’t ready to spend the day at home. I started bugging Sachin, asking to go somewhere. And having only a day, we decided to go on a one-day trip.
There goes both of us quickly google mapping all the places we have marked or any potential ones. And we landed at one of the places that Sachin had always wanted to go; Lunuganga, Geoffrey Bawa’s residence.
We spent about half an hour getting ready, and Anupa being Anupa, made sure she cleaned the house, packed some leftover Koththu and went down the elevator. Again the drama queen decided that her hair was in a bad mood and needed some refixing. After all, that drama was over, we left for our mini adventure. Since we hadn’t had breakfast, we shared the Koththu that we packed in.
Finding the place was not the easiest as the road leading to the place was quite narrow. And if I recall right, the road had some muddy paths as well.
We were in the location by 11.15 am only to realize that we had missed the 11 am garden tour. I was specifically feeling horrible because the fuss pot had to clean the apartment, do the hair and leave. Had we left a few mins early, we would have gotten here on time. But to our luck we were able to join the party as they had not gone too far.
The salty water of the lake, which is a lagoon branching from the Bentota River, explains Bawa’s name for the garden; “lunu-ganga” or “salt river”. Bawa also lowered the ridge of the hill here to be able to catch a glimpse of the water at the far end and placed a large antique Chinese jar whose silhouette catches the eye as it sweeps over the hill towards the southern horizon.
https://geoffreybawa.com/lunuganga
Bawa had developed this place in a way that he has created places for him to enjoy his day and the different activities he does with nature. Throughout the tour, the guide explained little little details of Bawa’s thought process of these corners and gave some history to each.
Let me share a bit with you;
As you enter the site, you will see this statue of the Hindu God Shiva in the garden side.
And while we were following the guide, we got to know that Bawa had created this different corners for him to have his meals and enjoy tea with a bell by the side always. This is the place where he rested and enjoyed his tea. The bell here was to ring and contact his team.
Just next to the above, you will find this dry pavilion where he used to relax and get some rest. Such a cozy corner for the tall individual of over 6.5 ft in height.
The best part of his designs is that he always connects with the surroundings and what it has to offer. This well located in the land is such an example where it takes the shape of a ‘Bo’ leaf from the ‘Bo’ tree; a tree of great value to Sri Lankan Buddhists.
And throughout your trip here, you will come across many gifts that great artists have given with so much respect to Bawa. Some of these have been gifted to mark the 100th birthday of Bawa. The wind chime you find here is such a gesture from Lee Mingwei. What more can you ask for in this peaceful surrounding other than the sound of wind moving around?? Such a thoughtful gift, I would say.
Great architects know the creative ways to follow nature to get the best out of it. The sundial here has been helping everyone to get an idea of the time of the day. If nature has answers to our questions, why not use it right??
Lunuganga is a home for many trees and most of them are quite grown by now. Kumbuk tree here provides the exact shade you would seek from a tree plus that beautiful scenery. This is a famous tree in Sri Lanka.
I started getting flashbacks as soon as I saw this ‘Dang’ tree. It was a nostalgic moment from childhood when we used to go to collect ‘Dang’ which is a small purple fruit. ‘Dang’ got its name from its colour which refers to purple in Sinhala. We were told that these are called Indian Purple Berries in India.
Throughout our walk, we could see a lot of ‘Kaduru’ seeds on the ground, a poisonous fruit to eat. Traditional masks in Sri Lanka are made from ‘Kaduru’ wood, a popular industry in Sri Lankan down south.
By the river, you could see patches of nature-created chessboard designs. And obviously, my beloved was curious to go to the edge and have a peek.
If you’ve been to the Kandalama hotel, you would recollect the inspiration that you see here. This is a gift from Kengo Kuma the great architect, a design inspired by Bawa’s own Kandalama, one of the best creations in Sri Lanka.
Bawa’s brother, Bewis Bawa another great talent together with India Artist Nanda Gopal has designed this statue as inspired from the Greek God and Peter Pan. Such a unique combination.
Another bell we found during our walk where he has used this place to have some juice.
It was a sad scene to get to know that he had got these pillars down to get another idea of him alive, but was not able to as he got sick.
This white building built in 1960s was where his bedroom is at.
You come to this point where you would see a road going underneath the building which is similar to the road Ha-Ha in England. This has been just a foot path back then.
We were also gifted to see this painting by the Artist Laki Senanayaka who was just 33 years old when he created this masterpiece. What you see here is the Ramayana story. I know it is not very clear here, but believe me, it has a lot of fine details.
He rests here peacefully gracing at his own land and ideas; his ash lays here in a corner by the garden.
We saw this ongoing construction work happening and were curious to know what. This is a project to build an infinity pool similar that of the Hotel Kandalama overlooking the river. What a beautiful view could it be??
You wouldn’t be surprised to see windmills in a place with this much open space and this one has been able to generate half a bottle of water upon one rotation. And it is built in a manner, so that it stops when the tank is overfilled.
One of my favorites here is this gift by the Artist Chandra Gupta, an art with a collection of different symbols. Even though we weren’t able to demystify this art, there is a great story to this, which I learnt over a YouTube video.
Proving the saying that nature has answers to all, we found the ground covered with jack leaves which is acting as a shield to protect the grass during sunny days. Teams clean only during wet seasons.
With all the trees you will be bestowed with, you will come across this Na tree as well, standing strong, and no wonder why it is the national tree of Sri Lanka.
And as our last destination, I would call this a building of so much color and character. A building built around the 1980s with a black and white tiled floor entrance path, you will find so many different pieces nicely placed around giving that cozy vibe it needs. And one of the key highlights here is Bawa’s lounge chair.
You will not miss this lunch table of Bawa overlooking the river again with his own bell by the side. Yes, as I told you, you will find so many bells here, and I am sad I didn’t take a count.
And for any wine lover, this is to tell you that what you see here is a big wine tumbler which could hold up to 4,000 liters. Oh yeah !!
Sachin has always loved tropical modernist architecture, hence we decided to come here and it was his first time. He knew this was one of the best places for a photographer to capture some shots. Better late than never right? ?It was a day to remember for Sachin as his eyes for architecture were treated with beautiful details and history. We walked around the area by ourselves, captured more shots and left.
This was a different article from what I normally write. This was the first time I used the mobile app (Day One) to log my events so that I don’t forget the details. Dedicated to share beautiful captures and some interesting facts we learned about Lunuganga, Geoffrey Bawa’s residence which is so much character. Every corner of the land and the buildings, every item has a story and a meaning behind it which connects back to nature. I guess that is what a real architect is capable of. There is no piece with no meaning to it.
I hope you had a nice ride in this place and hope you got a good tour of the place with us. Going through these photos makes us miss these trips and places more and more.
No, our one day trip didn’t end here, will come back with another beauty soon.
