ARTIST – IN – VILLAGE RESIDENCY

Abstract

Being a frequent visitor of Kohat district for the past eighteen years, I have always been fascinated by the British era bridge (locally known as the old Khushal garh bridge), over the mighty river Indus. It bridges Attock and Kohat districts bordering the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. With the abandonment of old bridge, after the construction of a new 2 – lane concrete bridge in its vicinity, the intent is to convert the old bridge into a place that is about people, public place, recreation & views. In a context where places associated with water bodies gain immense touristic value (Khushal garh riverside being one of them) owing to the lack of formal leisure and entertainment facilities, architectural interventions can play a pivotal role in fulfilling the recreational needs of the local community hence giving the bridge a new life and meaning. Retaining the bridge as the sole highlight of the site, the proposed interventions become an extension of the landscape that explore an architectural response to the immediate context, topography and culture therefore generating an effective design solution for a disused landmark structure.