Extreme Metaphors: Interviews with J.G. Ballard 1967-2008 (book #28)

Edited by Simon Sellars and Dan O’Hara, the book collects 44 conversations including his first published interview, with George MacBeth in 1967, and one of his last, a 2008 interview with James Naughtie. Other contributors include Eduardo Paolozzi, Jon Savage, Will Self, David Cronenberg, Mark Dery, Richard Kadrey, Iain Sinclair, John Gray, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Toby Litt and Hari Kunzru.

Each interview includes a brief introduction from either Simon Sellars or Dan O’Hara , and the book’s title is taken from a 1984 chat with Thomas Frick, in which Ballard says: 'presumably all obsessions are extreme metaphors waiting to be born. That whole private mythology, in which I believe totally, is a collaboration between one’s conscious mind and those obsessions that, one by one, present themselves as stepping-stones.' Given that, to a certain extent, Ballard gestated his own obsessions in the interview situation before birthing them in his fiction, ‘extreme metaphors’ seemed the perfect title for our collection.

@ Amazon

J. G. Ballard (15 November 1930 – 19 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, and prominent member of the New Wave movement in science fiction. His best-known books are Crash (1973), adapted into a film by David Cronenberg, and the semi-autobiographical Empire of the Sun (1984), made into a film by Steven Spielberg.

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indian architecture awards 2012

Residential: Single Residence - Ar. Jayadev, Cochin

Project: Rithu, Cochin

Highlights of Project: Integrated indoor-outdoor transition; simple lines; play of colours; ample natural light and ventilation.

Residential: Multi-storey -Ar. Kiran Venkatesh of InFORM Archietcts, Bangalore  

Project: Housing Tower One, Hyderabad

Highlights of Project: Green features; responsible living and social interaction spaces; strong massing and colour scheme;  aesthetic of  building  derived from functional and creative moves  intrinsic to planning rather than as external application of elements.

Public Category: Ar. Manit Rastogi & Ar. Sonali Rastogi of Morphogenesis, New Delhi

Project: City Centre, Siliguri

Highlights of Project: Most significant is the bio-climatological approach; interface between township and city; break-out spaces in the form of landscaped terraces on each floor; indigenous to the city.

Interiors Category: Ar. Tushar V. of Ochre Architects, Bangalore

Project: No. 20, Office Extension

Highlights of Project: Functional planning with break-free geometry; water bodies; innovative and significant interiors.

Landscape-Design Category: Ar. Akash Hingorani of Oasis Designs Inc., New Delhi

Project: Bhairon Marg Urban Landscape, New Delhi.

Highlights of Project: Integrated approach of urban planning that amalgamates the field of Landscape design, transport planning and urban design to bring about a cohesive space that works for the pedestrians as well as vehicles.

Research Category: Ar. Yatin Pandya of Footprints E.A.R.T.H., Ahmedabad

Project: Concepts of Space

Highlights of Project: Unravelling the inherent virtues of traditional Indian Architecture and interpreting them as universal dictums, relevant to reinstate in contemporary times.

Industrial Category: Ar. Sunil Patil of SPA, Pune

Project: Fratelli Wines, Akluj

Highlight of Project: Soul of this building are intricately designed spaces, which interact with each other in such a manner that the visitor can feel the process of wine making. Landscape as key microclimate modifier. Simple no-nonsense approach.

Heritage Buildings: Ar. Pankaj & Ar. Pranoti Modi, Ahmedabad

Project: Restoration, Rehabilitation & Retrofit - LIMBDI

Highlights of Project: Sensitivity hand-in-glove with dynamism – an ideal approach to heritage architecture.

Urban Infrastructure: Ar. Sourabh Gupta of Archohm, Noida

Project: Vadodara Bharuch Toll Plaza

Highlights of Project: Reinterpreting urban infrastructure typology through dramatic visual experience and functional optimization.

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Lankapura

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