A
R
C
H
I
T
E
C
T
U
R
E
+
D
E
S
I
G
N
J O U R N E Y S | L U N U G A N G A
is a romantic and lavish Eden where
Bawa's Sri Lankan constructions—which
are dripping in the adornments of the
architect's pan-cultural approach—are
scattered throughout the estate's mossy-
green gardens of native trees, rice paddies,
and water-lapped lily ponds interspersed
with pathways, pavilions, gazebos, and
Greek sculpture. To understand the
grounds is to understand the architecture
itself, which Bawa designed to respond
to the landscape via overhanging roofs
and wide verandas connected to sublime
outdoor courtyards flush with Southeast
Asia exotica. Even when one is inside a
structure, one is simultaneously out, if
in sensation only. There is little barrier—
physically or culturally—to the local
environment.
Contained within independent structures
that are strewn across the estate are nine
individually furnished rooms and suites.
Breezy and beautifully trimmed, these
spaces are resplendent, featuring an easy
yet elegant mix of batik textiles, antique
personal expression of Bawa himself. In
its thick, unruly wilds, he saw its potential
immediately.
"From the onset, Bawa was intent on finding
a land with a connection to the water, and
it took a considerable search to arrive at
Lunuganga," says the Geoffrey Bawa Trust.
But once he set his eyes on the land, which
sits on the banks of the Dedduwa Lake,
Bawa set his mind on transforming it. As the
architect wrote in a letter to a friend while
working on his monograph Lunuganga: "It
was enormously exciting, and the morning
after the dramatic breaking of walls and the
feel of possession, the adventure began."
In truth, it never ended. From the moment
the effort commenced to open the estate to
its exalted view, Bawa continued to change
and shape Lunuganga for 40 years, up
until the last days of his practice. It was too
idyllic a canvas for a man of vision to resist.
Located a few miles inland from Sri Lanka's
sublime west coast beaches, between
the vibrant capital of Colombo and the
historic old city of Galle, Lunuganga
44 DIGS.NET
| 12.1.23
