Saraf Foundation
  • Boudhanath Sadak
  • Kathmandu 44600
  • Nepal
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Archiving for the future: An Intersection of Heritage & Architecture

Published on: 13 January, 2025

“ARCHIVING FOR THE FUTURE” is a curated display that explores the juncture of time, architecture, and archives documented through memory and people and highlights the role of archiving in preserving and promoting our shared heritage for future generations.

The Nepal Architecture Archive (NAA), officially founded in 2016, is housed on the sprawling premises of the Taragaon Museum. This growing and versatile archive with rare photographs, books, surveys, blueprints, objects, and invaluable notes serves as readings of Nepal’s fast-changing urban landscapes and cultural nuances. Documented over the years by numerous international and local visiting scholars and artists, the archive houses collected and donated material by over a hundred contributors whose research maps histories of varied architectural elements and materials for future understanding and documentation.

Niels Gutschow curated a collection of works by architects, anthropologists, artists, cartographers, engineers, photographers, planners, researchers, and advisors to the government for public viewing across the seven buildings of Carl Pruscha’s Taragaon Hostel, converted into the Taragaon Museum in 2014. The fascinating architectural structures with their brick walls, niches, and large round windows proved to be a space that spurred curiosity in the direction of the architectural archive to understand Nepal’s (primarily Kathmandu Valley) architectural landscapes and the changes it has undergone over the past few decades. The earlier exhibition display focused on academically highlighting photographs, etchings, maps, plans, and drawings. Taking a cue from these elements, this show of the permanent collection of NAA aims to open up access to a broader audience who will, over time, become the keepers and future contributors of the archive and the conveners of their museum, and their histories and futures at Taragaon Next.

To facilitate a refreshed vision of the Nepal Architecture Archive, the curatorial team envisioned looking at a broad overview of four primary themes across three galleries: People and Places (portraits, studio, and topography), Vernacular Architecture, Architectural Surveys, and Monuments (Stupas, chaityas, temples, and mandaps). The maps, photographs, objects, and ephemera that articulate these four themes are either originals or reprints of materials from the archive by scholars, researchers, and contributors who have spent years and some decades documenting the lives and landscapes of people and places they encountered. Each gallery offers various access points for visitors to the archive with their own stories and histories. While the display will remain for two years, there will be constant interventions and interactions within these gallery spaces by other artists as well as elements of the exhibition that will continue to evolve and change to encourage visitors to return. In addition, the exhibition offers modules for learning, interaction, engagement, and experience for children, students, scholars, and curious visitors through materials from the archive, immersive works, and programming that activates the spaces to grow knowledge and connect with the archive.

Conceptualization: Saraf Foundation and Taragaon Next

Curated by: Sujan Chitrakar arid Veerangana Kumari Solanki
Curatorial Assistant: Priyanka Tulachan
Research: Asmita Nepal
Installation: Deepak Lama and Shankar Thapa Magar
Coordination: Swaraj Chitrakar and Dikki Sherpa
Design: Aman Shahi

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