The four-metre high doors of the new Centre of Indian Culture
The doors are four meters high, each smoothly rotating on
two ball bearings. The scene is the new Centre for Indian Culture at Bharat
Nivas, the construction of which is in the finishing phases. The carpenter is Auroville’s New Dawn Carpentry, run by
Aurovilians Ricardo Cosarinsky from Argentina and Danasu, from Tamil Nadu.
“The doors are impressive,” confirms Ricardo. “But they were
the devil in making. We used wood from the khaya trees that came down in
cyclone Thane, as that was the only wood available that was large enough. But
the wood is very unpleasant to work with. Though it had been seasoned for 28
days and the humidity content had come down to the normal 8-14%, the wood kept
warping and twisting. I also wasn’t happy with the finishing touch, as khaya
doesn’t allow for such a smooth feel as does ‘Work’ tree.”
For the layman, however, the doors feel good, as do the
other doors and windows tha...
>> More
>> More