Divine Studio

A B O U T U S . . .

J GODWIN EMMANUEL
B.Arch., M.Arch.,landscape (Ph.D)

Godwin is an academician, research scholar, landscape architect and an aspiring analytical thinker and writer. He also aspires to demonstrate sustainable practices, in all his personal, professional and spiritual capabilities. Godwin graduated his Bachelor Degree in Architecture from Adhiyamaan College of Engineering, Hosur in 2003. After a year experience of Architectural practice in Bangalore, he went on to pursue his Masters’ degree in Landscape Architecture, at School of Architecture and Planning, Chennai in 2006.

He has 12 years of experience, both in practice and academia. He has worked with a few renowned organizations across South India. Partnered with his wife landscape Ar.Ophylia, started their firm “the divine landscape architects" in 2009. The firm offers consultancy services on planning and design of various residential, institutional and commercial projects across the country. Also the firm presented one of the six shortlisted entries in a national level planning competition conducted by Surat municipal corporation in 2010. Further, in a state level competition in 2013, awarded for their own house - the divine home, set up in a serene 2.5 acre coconut farm, near Tiruchirappalli.

Godwin is currently working as an Associate Professor in C.A.R.E. school of Architecture since 2010. He conducts workshops on aspects related to site planning, Diagrammatic Design thinking etc. He has coordinated so far a few hands-on construction workshops, panel discussion etc. He has lectured and conducted various studio programmes on Rural study, Urban Design, Architectural Design, Building construction and Architectural graphics. He has been awarded twice as the best faculty of the year. He is a research scholar at National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli since 2013, currently doing his research on Historic Urban Landscapes. In this regard, he has presented a paper on “Assessing natural, social and visual processes in historic urban landscapes: the case of Tiruchirappalli City, India” during the International Conference on Asian Studies - 2016 held at Toronto, Canada. The paper has been published in the Proceedings of Asian Studies 2016. He published yet another research paper entitled “Natural landscapes in smart cities – Case: Chennai city” in the December 2014 issue of the Journal of Architecture, Chandigarh. He has also been awarded a year long scholarship from INTACH during the year 2016, and has come up with a report which is currently under the peer review for publication.

G OPHYLIA VINODHINI
B.Arch., M.Arch.,landscape (Ph.D)

Ophylia Vinodhini is an academician, research scholar, landscape architect and an aspiring motivator and initiator of student activities. She graduated her Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture from Periyar Maniammai College of Technology for Women, Thanjavur in 2007 (affiliated to Anna University, Chennai), Further pursued Masters in Landscape Architecture at School of Architecture and Planning, Chennai in 2009. She is a Research Scholar since 2013 at the Department of Architecture, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirapalli. Her area of research interest is Landscape planning for urbanisation of infrastructure in the Indian cities and its changes, specific to roadways. In this regard, she has presented a paper entitled “Landscape Elements of Highways in India: A comparison between the old and the new “during the International Conference on Asian Studies - 2016 held at Toronto, Canada. The paper has been published in the Proceedings of Asian Studies 2016. She published yet another research paper entitled “Issues in Indian Cities due to increasing coverage of Highways" in 2014 issue of the Creative Space journal of Chitkara University.

She is currently working as an Assistant Professor in C.A.R.E. School of Architecture since 2010. With as little as 7 years of teaching explorations, she is enthusiastic in constantly devising various participatory methods of learning+teaching to create interest in the student. She regularly explores various pedagogical methods in studio programmes for the foundation years of learning architecture. Her true inspirations on this learning process, has evolved right from her internship with Ar.Murali and few other renowned mentors of the architecture fraternity in India. She has conducted courses such as “Site Analysis and Planning”, “Urban Housing” and “Building materials with rural emergence.”

In practice, she has partnered with her husband landscape Ar.Godwin, in the firm “the DIVINE landscape architects” since 2009. Their residence was awarded as the best house in a state level competition. Living in a serene environment away from the city, she dreams of a truthful existence of sustainability in all her grounds.