India hosts a multitude of museums, art galleries, public libraries, theaters, and heritage centers. Nevertheless, many of these structures remain abandoned and fossilized like the artifacts they intend to present and protect. The development of cultural infrastructure in India has historically been a government endeavor, often resulting in a state of stagnation. The past two decades have seen a noticeable shift in the country’s cultural landscape. Increased interest from private institutions has paved the way for plenty of cultural projects to be initiated, usually in partnership with city authorities. These contemporary projects aim to celebrate the richness of India’s historical and contemporary culture, becoming prize destinations for the rising middle class.
The city of Bangalore in the state of Karnataka is one that has seen immense development in this aspect, with famed institutions like the Ranga Shankara Theater, the Indian Music Experience Museum, the recent opening of the Museum of Art and Photography by Mathew and Ghosh Architects, and the upcoming Bangalore chapter of the Science Gallery. Principal Architect and Partner at Mathew and Ghosh Architects, Nisha Mathew Ghosh recalls the beginning of an escalating movement with their competition project for the Freedom Park in the early 2000s. “For the first time, the government, which had never previously engaged with Indian architects, began to collaborate with the private world to facilitate infrastructural development” she shares in conversation with ArchDaily. The Freedom Park was set up by a public-private body established to provide a vision for the city.
