Sunday, Nov 30, 2003
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Kerala-Thiruvananthapuram
By Our Staff Reporter
At a solemn, yet glittering special convocation ceremony held in the Senate Hall here, the Governor, Sikander Bakht, who is also the Chancellor of the university, awarded the Doctor of Letters, `honoris causa', to the British-born, Lawrence Wilfred Baker, who had chosen Kerala as his second home. It was in recognition of his outstanding contributions to learning that he was honoured with this degree. In his convocation address, the Chancellor described Dr. Baker as an `Architect Extraordinaire', a `perumthachan', to be exact a master builder. Hailing him as ``being more Indian than many an Indian,'' the Chancellor observed that his contribution to the post-Independent architectural scenario had been cardinal on all counts. His constructions have ever been aesthetic, eco-friendly and above all, economical, Mr. Bakht said. Dr. Baker had emerged as a role-model for the young generation of Indian architects. He devised his own style that had his signature of structural honesty, design integrity and sustaining quality, Mr. Bakht said. ``His is an act of initiation from within, not of instigation; an art of inner intimation, not of imitation. Little wonder, the final outcome is an endearing creation and not an engineering product,'' the Chancellor said. In his acceptance speech, Dr. Baker said he thought of himself as a practical architect and not as an academic. ``As much as possible, I have used extremely economical practices which time has proved to be good and effective and durable,'' he remarked adding that it was important and sensible to use locally available materials for construction purposes. Such building materials would also give the original character to the architecture of a particular area, he said. The Vice-Chancellor, B. Ekbal, read out the citation on Dr. Baker. Born in Birmingham, England, on March 2, 1917, Baker was educated in King Edward's Grammar School and the Birmingham School of Architecture. A chance meeting with Mahatma Gandhi, in Mumbai, in the 1940s, turned out to be a turning point in his life. Drawing inspiration from the teachings of the Mahatma, Baker returned to India in 1945, initially to work among leprosy patients. Three years later he married Elizabeth Jacob, a doctor from Kerala. The Bakers worked in Pithorgarh of Uttar Pradesh for 16 years, before moving to Wagamon in Kerala. Since 1970, they have been living in Thiruvanannthapuram. In the year 1988, Baker became an Indian citizen. Founder of the Centre for Science and Technology for Rural Development (Costford), Baker is the recipient of many awards and recognitions, including the Padmasree (1990), the U.N. Habitat Award (1992) and International Union of Architects Award (1993) and the Honorary Doctorate degree from the University of Central England and the Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati. Among those present at the convocation ceremony were Elizabeth Baker, K.N. Raj and Leela Gulati. The university choir recited verses from ``Shilparatna'', a 16th century Sanskrit text on architecture, as the Chancellor conferred on Dr. Baker, the D.Litt. degree.
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