Maahi Devta

HR4000

This essay examines the ‘strangeness’ and architectural importance of the outdoor spaces of the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal, by Anant Raje. Unique in their placement, material articulation, and experiential intent, these outdoor spaces—particularly the arch courts and pavilions—occupy a central role in the spatial narrative of the campus complex. Through the process of drawing-making, archival research, and comparative analysis the essay position the outdoor courts at IIFM as spaces that are constructed into sites of intention through these strange details of structure and tectonics, summarizing Raje’s institutional architecture strategy and his rethinking of spatial hierarchy within it.