Sunethra Bandaranaike remembers turning down the driveway to Lunuganga, Sri Lanka with the world’s first-ever female prime minister in the seat beside her. They had been invited by Geoffrey Bawa to visit his garden estate, and her mother’s first impression was guarded to say the least. “It looks like we are driving through a forest. What is this?” Sunethra remembers Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike asking.
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: The Back Story
By this time, Sunethra and Bawa were friends—and she didn’t need her mother’s eventual confirmation to know that Lunuganga was the work of a genius. “I was 29 when I met Geoffrey,” Sunethra recalls, adding that it was around 1972, and the architect was roughly her mother’s age. On the surface, they had little in common. “I had no understanding of architecture; it was a building and I liked it or didn’t like it, and that was all.” But Bawa seemed to enjoy their conversations. If he hadn’t heard from her in a few days, Bandaranaike would pick up her phone to find him on the other end. When they did meet, the two would break out the whiskey, light up cigarettes, and talk buildings. He gave her books he thought she might find interesting and took her with him to visit his sites at Kandalama, Galle and Wadduwa. Sunethra says it grew into a close relationship. “I wasn’t one of his architectural people. I was just a good friend. He trusted me and I trusted him,” she says.
A handsome Dutch door adorns the loggia; the pillars supporting the porch roof are also Dutch antiques. Sunethra purchased the door and pillars from an old manor house near Galle. The benches were custom-made by her carpenter.
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: A Visit to Remember
Perhaps this is why, when she asked him whether he would convert an old stable block on their family property in Horagolla into a home for her, she expected him to say yes. Instead, Geoffrey said no. Being who she is, Sunethra wasn’t content with that answer. She persisted, and eventually convinced the architect to visit the site. She remembers him asking her to stop the car some way off as he took in the landscape and outlines of the building. He was tall enough to lean on the roof of her car, and lit up a contemplative cigarette while she watched anxiously from within the vehicle. She could almost see his mind, whirring away like a camera, capturing all the details. Cigarette finished, he looked at her and said, “Yes, I’ll do it!”, and as simply as that, the matter seemed to be settled. Sunethra now owned the stables, having bought them and the surrounding acre from her brother. The main house had been built by her grandfather, and these horse stables—more beautiful and imposing than you’d expect—were part of the property.
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: Learning Through Observation
Sunethra and her husband at the time, Udaya Nanayakkara, were on a tight budget, but this was alright because they were in no hurry. The two drove across the island looking for well-seasoned, high-quality timber, like Burma Teak, which could usually be found in grand old houses. These were expensive acquisitions, but warranted for their quality—and exactly what Geoffrey wanted for the house. Sunethra was also interested in the decor, and once again had learned a great deal from simply watching Geoffrey select and respond to art. So much so, that at one point in the construction process, the two had independently stumbled upon the same magnificent wooden Dutch door.
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: Winning Strategy
When Sunethra heard from the antique dealer that Bawa had shown interest in it, she ran back home to Udaya, demanded some money and rushed to purchase the door. She then had the shop owner hide it under a stack of undistinguished lumber. Though Geoffrey returned to the shop and looked everywhere with a torch, the door evaded him. He only realised who his competition had been when he visited Horagalla and found it leaning against a wall. He demanded she give it to him, to which Bandaranaike responded politely but firmly in the negative. She says he then gave in with good grace and chose the perfect spot for the door. Even today, Sunethra is unrepentant. “He and I battled for things and I often won,” she says, adding that this was because she had hit upon a weakness in his strategy: “Geoffrey was not in the habit of paying for things.
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: The Theatre of Life
Meanwhile the house was being transformed around them. At the time, Geoffrey had Indian architect Philip Fowler working with him, and it was the latter who spent the most time on the house. Geoffrey himself would visit once every two weeks or so, to check on the progress. The stable hall itself became a double-height living room, with a timber mezzanine. Sunethra had asked Geoffrey to create more space for her and so he designed a new wing containing kitchens and a guest suite. He added space for a dining room after Sunethra refused to use the veranda for that purpose. (When she asked him how they would eat on the veranda when it rained, he replied: “Mop it.”)
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: A Natural Landscape
On Bawa’s advice, Sunethra began to encircle the property with trees, and she planted Hora (after which the property is named), Kotang and Kohombo trees all around. Others varieties were added for the scent and beauty of their owners. Now, Bawa added blocks of open lawn that stretched till the foot of the trees. Verandas looked out over the garden courts, an invitation to relax. One would imagine that a conversion of this sort might leave little room to manoeuvre, but the architect left his mark. Writing about the garden pavilion in his book In Search of Bawa, David Robson would note: ‘The conversion was achieved with great restraint, but Bawa could not resist adding a few witticisms—the two occuli which mark the ends of the long veranda, the ancient fan which hangs from the gallows’ bracket above the dining table, the name boards of the long-deceased horses, the small pavilion on the front lawn with the door which leads nowhere, and the art deco bathrooms which seem to have escaped from a Hollywood movie.’
Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka: Work to Reckon With
The result was a magnificent home, and what is today one of the most celebrated examples of Bawa’s work. Sunethra still remembers the day they were ready to move in. It was the 25th of November, 1987. Her mother was there, and so was her sister Chandrika (who would go on to become Sri Lanka’s first and only female president in 1994). Bawa brought his friends along as well, and insisted on an impromptu parade, leading them all into the house behind a domestic carrying a lit candelabra. Warm laughter spills out of Sunethra at the memory. “With him, there was always some drama.”
Now that her friend is gone, Sunethra seems simply grateful for how this space is a tangible memory of him. Here, Bawa’s talent, wit and imagination are writ in brick and mortar, garden court and occuli, and they all come together in this house she calls home.
Enjoyed reading this article? To receive more articles like this, sign up for the Architectural Digest Newsletter
