1. The poster designed by Namrata Toraskar of Vanamu.
2. We have planned workshops for different audiences. (see above)
3. Hemanth (our contractor – https://www.instagram.com/vertical4_construction/ is facilitating the live build and making the site available for these workshops. Construction has kicked off with his team on site.
4. Working within the site and budget restrictions, Hemanth was able to suggest valuable changes to the design and work with natural building techniques that we are learning from Daoodji Muwal
5. The Instagram post which is tracking interest and signups can be seen here.
6. The site is located here.
7. Sign up for these engagements here.

06/04/26 by Varun Thautam

The following narratives came up with the actions taken at step 1.

1. A series of revised drawings (see above) and a revised estimate for our contractor (Hemanth Kumar) and our team of masons (Yogesh Anna and Co).
2. Locations of the septic tank and sump tank and their excavation to understand the soil below. soil was dug along with the local well-digging team (Raju from Penukonda), who moved the soil out to the garden area for us to play with.

4. The site was marked again, this time with the foundations redesigned based on soil strata; marked with the help of Mira and excavated with the same team that dug the pits.

6. Deeper conversations post lunch with Artist – Parents, Arnab ( https://www.instagram.com/arnab_creates/) and Pooja (https://www.instagram.com/themamulistudio/) on the possibilities of engagements led by them.

5. Namrata is carefully leading and managing the outreach and developing content for engagement through workshops, possibly extending the build period to the end of June 2026. Seen below is her class at SMI being introduced to the project.

29/3/2026 by Varun Thautam

This post documents the first week of idea initiation. This includes the prior work by Vanamu.org since we heard about the possible shutting down of Samatva in its current rented location and its move to its new site of Nanda.

<insert photos of evidence towards primary disucssions>

This was a design that had one evolution with Nanda that can be seen here, which led to this step 1.

You can access step 0 of the design here on request.

Namrata introduced the idea of community engagement after the graduation ceremony and curated the structure of step 1, from the presentation to the engagement after it.

<Insert Presentation Photo>

That first evolution of the design based on feedback from Nanda alone was presented to the elders’ group present at the ceremony.

You can access Namrata’s presentation here on request

This curation also included the first-ever elders’ meeting, where we, for the very first time, sat in a community circle. This was also the very first time we’ve had the opportunity to have this level of a say and the breadth of responsibility to have a stake. Perhaps a first chance to have a collective positionality about our children’s learning.

<insert photos and videos of the elders circle>

We also met as a site-marking team the very next day on a Sunday morning, where we understood the site dimensions and looked at the spaces marked out. We talked through these spaces, which allowed us valuable discussions on site. A symbolic collective rangoli on the ground, binding us with the site.

<insert site marking photos/videos>, and let’s describe them in a little more detail.

Further discussions with Hemanth (our contractor) and Vijay Kumar (our stonemason) led to several design changes.

<Insert collective photos>

At Vanamu, we assume the role of the architect of the space and the community that builds the space; opening it up to anyone else who would like to foster the space along with Nanda and her home of children.

We thank you for these overwhelmingly rich and diverse inputs from all these above engagements that have led to a shift in framing and, as a mason/architect, to a personal reflection in a series of recordings.

A 10-minute taster and its continuation into an 80-minute podcast-style reflection are intended for the elders interested in listening at their own interest; <you can hear them on request>.

An AI-generated 10-minute read is here and the 20-minute read is here, <open access, >

The revised design can be seen here <open access, names hidden>

This post also opens up the space and time for conversations in any form. around this first step of regeneration. Let’s go “get a yield” towards a community. Vanamu is listening.

Let’s move on to step 2.

Why Jack Arches?

Jack arches, built of fired brick and bearing themselves on steel girders are no ecological option of building a roof. They surely consume more embodied energy than a typical RCC slab. If designed well, the steel / concrete beams that support these jack arches can work as composite structures where the brick is in pure compression and the steel in tension, where further optimization can be gained.

It is a maintenance-free roof: When built on a slope, these work as a maintenance-free alternative to the typical Mangalore tiled roof. No need to change the tiles for life, no need to bother about monkeys/rain/wind dislodging your tiles. No need for purlins that rust. Nor worry about insects lodging themselves in between tiles. No entry of mosquitos. No entry of water. Almost double the thermal performance of a RCC Slab. It brings back the vernacular Mangalore tiled roof, without the need for a complicated sloping RCC structure. 

The breathable, sound, and moisture-absorbing humility of a brick is compounded to protect and serve you well. If you believe that you want to build a space/home, that will leave an impact over more than a few generations, this method will make you fall in love with it. 

Jack arches are surely faster than a typical RCC Slab, can be loaded almost immediately, and can be built with little / no skill by anyone.

Labor of the love, of building these with the free spanning method, if done in a DIY method, will make the system 50% cheaper than an RCC slab. But one cannot place a price on that labor ;-).   The value of this skill will increase hand in hand with the increasing costs of steel and cement. 

Need for such a workshop

Over the past three years, we have been working with local masons to develop the skill of vaults and dome building with Lime-sukhi mortar. The free-spanning method is a lost skill that we are bringing back through these masons. A free-spanning method does not use shuttering, like conventional arches/vaults being built today. It is much stronger, as the individual arches lock in place while the mortar shrinks and sets. The curves are built by a mason with intuition, allowing a play of curves along different spans, allowing for expanding / contracting spans, with changing the rise of an arch. The

The free-spanning method needs a certain rational grounding, for anyone wanting to build a vault for a roof overhead. The workshop grounds you rationally and intuitively to be able to design and build small span arches, 3′ – 6′. It is the fundamental start of every “vault and dome” builder. Level 1, as my masters put it.

The site of Eng. Vijay Kumar of SKV Constructions, managed by Hemanth of Vertical 4 Construction and being designed by Ar.Veeraj Shet, allows us a practice space for 10-15 people working over two days to propagate this skill.

Background and source of knowledge.

My love for the art of building with vaults and domes started at the UNESCO Chair Earthen Architecture – Asia, Auroville back in 2008. Over the past 10 years, practicing as an architect-dome builder, I have risked the enthusiasm and trust that several clients have placed in me to experiment in their projects. Several of these experiments were aimed to unearth some of the pieces of the lost art of designing and building with vaults and domes. 

When I came to Mexico, I had a very strong foundation on the scientific methods and tools used to design and build vaults and domes. Imagining and calculating curves under compression was a mathematical and geometrical approach – pure mathematics and physics. The past 5 years here in Mexico have been such a spectacular unlearning and learning process. The master vault and dome builders here surprised me with the compete intuitive approach to this – pure art. I have been closely observing the masters of Ar.Ramon Aguirre defy gravity with his Gaussian curves. There is Maestro Andres Flores (a third generation bovedero) who can build as effortlessly and imaginatively as an ant; as if his body and soul were connected with his creations. On the other hand there are masters like James Anthony who treat this artistic profession as meticulously and religiously as a spider builds a web. Using the body as a measure has helped then evolve a form to intuitive building, that cannot be easily explained by rational science. As their humble student, I am privileged to have been growing parallelly in the rational and the intuitive methods. 

Back here in India, I’ve had the fortune of learning from the Master mason – Sonu Jangra of the Rohtak domes fame. His technique of flat domes is un-matched in the country, and possibly worldwide.

While I am no longer a professional vault and dome builder myself, workshops are an opportunity to pass on the experience gained. Maestro Andres says..sharing is the best method to learn and grow. I humbly take this opportunity to prepare myself to consolidate my learnings and seek opportunities to learn further through visits of artisans and learn from teachers who are willing to share. Below are a list of themes that can be explored in the workshop based on the turnout. 

History of Curves and Arches | History of Vaults and Domes, examples and aspects of design | Symbolism, Meaning, terminology | Materials and their properties | Adobe, Bricks, Blocks, and stone | Thermal mass, insulation, humidity buffering, climatic design | Types of mortars – Mud, Lime, Cement and gypsum plaster | Concepts of structural design of Masonry, limit state|  Design of strength, Loading, slenderness, eccentricity | Control of Safety and Reduction Coefficients | Control of drying and contraction of mortars | Structural Design and Calculations | Structural design using catenary method  (Gaudi’s and Guastavino’s method) | Structural design using funicular method (Auroville Earth Institute) | Intuitive methods of construction using body as a measure and guide (system of mexican bovederos) | Concepts of foundations, piers, buttresses, beams and ties to receive Arches, vaults and domes | Construction and Organization of work | Tracing of curves, preparing of guides, forms and scaffolds | Site organization and management of teams | Basics of quality of workmanship and control of human error | Cost and time of construction | International codes and norms | Personal and shared experiences | Impermeabilization and waterproofing | Presentation of trials and errors | Presentation of work process of artisans around the world

See some videos on the free-spanning method from around the world

Mohammad Hadeez, an ex-student of Vanamu / Varun Thautam, and an indirect student of the Master dome builder Andres Flores of Mexico created this timelapse of mexican dome construction at his project site in Coimbatore.

Hadeez worked with us for a year and half, where he showed interest to work on the construction of vaults and domes. Over the 6 domes he built with us from 2019 till 2021, he has developed the skill of building and the knack of transferring this intuitive technique.

The body is used as a measure to build. There is no need for a formwork to get a certain shape. The domes can be built on any type of plan, square, rectangle, polygonal etc.

Hadeez’s largest dome was of 20’x 20’at Solur and his smallest was of 7’x 7′, built with Varun Thautam in 2 days.

We use all kinds of natural mortars, clay-sand to lime-sand and hydraulic lime – brick-powder.

All credits go to him for the construction and shooting of this timelapse video. You can contact him on insta https://www.instagram.com/hyperisum/?…

Vanamu is a forest of learning where vernacular ideas, processes and methods are searched, studied and taught.

You can sign up for workshops at http://vanamu.org/

Contact us at contact@vanamu.org

Macazaga

A groundbreaking project executed with a team built out of the best hands collected over the past projects working with communities. From the workshops conducted in Mexico from the years 2015-2017, few of the participants stayed on to build more and to better their skills, to the extent that their skills were now more valuable than the time they had invested in learning them. The power of working with communities is not about the project, but about the relationships built. The actual investment goes into building lasting relationships. 

Cabin for Casa Naomin

The objective of the project was to build a ultra lowultra- costlow-cost Cabin for Casa Naomin, a modest family run yoga school, located deep in the forests of Santa Rosa de lima, Guanajuato, Mexico. The design was to use the natural curves of human movement and use of space. Could a sleeping space for 5-6 people with a comfortable bathroom be designed to allow for privacy without isolation, within 300 sft of built up area. Space, time and materials were optimized to the bare minimum to reduce cost and environmental impact. Build what is only needed. 

Further the project was designed to be built with inexperienced participant labor in a workshop setting; a majority of the cabin was to be built in a week. The clients were to host a group of participants, provide them with food and hospitality for the week of the workshop. The architect’s experience as a mud mason and a trainer was put to test, to guide inexperienced “participants” to build a complex form. 

The project was thus divided into three phases. The pre workshop, where the foundations and brick walls built by the client. Materials were sourced locally for the workshop and publicity was done to find the 18 participants who would pay about 360 USD each for the workshop. The second stage is the one week intensive “mud building workshop” organized and hosted by the client. The challenge was to build about 300 sft of complex vaulting in 6 days. The clients then, post workshop; were to complete the structure as time, taste and means permitted. Though currently incomplete, the cabin was first rented out in Feb 2018. 

Cost and time of building can be reduced drastically when there are a minimum number of assemblies in a building. A single vaulted roof over a space reduces a building to a single system or method of construction. Be it a bird, a bear or an ant, the whole structure is a result of a single, repetitive, intuitive action resulting in a single assembly. When the complications in construction are reduced to one task, the learning curve to build a structure is shorter. This gives the amateur participant to focus, connect with oneself and quickly reach the intuitive aspects of a technique. 

The design was to use the natural curves of human movement and use of space. Cost and materials were optimized to accommodate 5-6 people in a cabin of under 300 sft of built up area. To reduce costs the project was designed to be built with inexperienced participant labor in a workshop setting; a majority of the cabin was to be built in a week. The clients were to host a group of participants, provide them with food and hospitality for the week of the workshop. The architect’s experience as a mud mason and a trainer was put to test, to guide inexperienced “participants” to build a complex form.

Handmade country fired bricks come with a slight variation in thickness and size due to its uneven shrinkage and its level of firing in the oven. Attention was initially brought to the selection of the right brick, understanding its position and angle. Acceptance of the irregularities in natural materials and using it as a palette to make a composition becomes a part of the learning experience. 

Closely observing the body’s posture is necessary to perceive, align and place the brick in its rightful place. Over time, the attention required reduces and the mind enters into a meditative rhythm. In this state, the body does not tire, even for a person who isn’t used to the strenuous work of building. A personal method quickly evolves in every individual. This is where the amateur quickly gains advantage over a seasoned professional, there is little necessity of demanding rigor, discipline or even acquired skill. 

Over the practice of a couple of days, everyone starts to work in coordination quite effortlessly. Little words are spoken, a teammates next need is understood with little communication. In the typical team of three, the first supplies the right brick and observes the curve from a distance. The second applies the right amount of mortar on the right sides while observing the brick course placement sidewise. The third places the brick in place with the right pressure observing and perfecting the placement with the help of the other two. All three members have to be connected deeply with the curve for each brick. Working in a team becomes a delight. 

The way the form is built also should afford a maximum number of people working at the same time. The design of courses is such that there is a combination of horizontal and vertical courses obiliges 6 teams of 3 to work simultaneously. It is a necessary condition for one curve to start above the other, this way the whole group finds a common rhythm. 

Cuckoo School

A local NGO, having close ties with the communities around the area. The school building was a need that was well thought out and communicated to us as a vision. With limited funds, a workshop was planned along with Made in Earth to channelize funds from participating architects and engineers. They were investing their time for the learning of use of mud in building arches, vaults and domes as well as the making of adobe bricks and natural plasters. The community; school children, parents and the villagers as well as wishers also participated in the 2 weeks workshop and supported the workshop participants with shifting of materials, mud mixing and the construction of vaults and domes. 

Adi’s residence, 2013 – Tiruttani, TN

A 600 sft residence for a friend, built under a tight budget of 6.5 lakhs. Client resources were his connections with the community, as a result of his farm agricultural work for two years prior to the construction of his farmhouse. A small team of local helpers with little construction experience were mobilized for a 2 month period to learn and build with vaults and domes. 

Local brick makers who make country fired bricks were hired to make adobe bricks with a custom sized mould developed specifically for the project. These adobe bricks were made out of excavated soil for a sump tank one site and sun dried before use. No cement  / lime stabilization was chosen. A small percentage of the bricks were fired locally on site on a custom made kiln to be used as a waterproofing layer. 

8 local helpers also participated in the training, hosted as an open hands-on workshop for architects and engineers for 2 weeks. Post the training period, based on the speed of construction achieved at its peak, 4 of the most proficient heplers were commissioned to build the remainder of the structure at a generous sq ft rate.

Local methods of building huts was explored, with the helpers themselves building the huts with the local thatching 

The project was completed in a period of 12 weeks, including waterproofing and red oxide flooring. The client is still residing at this particular residence.