Architecture, for Kashef Mahboob Chowdhury, has never been about spectacle. He says, “The last thing the world needed was another architecture book.” He wanted to focus on what feeling this book could arouse within people and thus, the journey started in 2019. That philosophy came into sharp focus at the launch of “Meditations in Entropy: The Work of Kashef Chowdhury / URBANA”, a comprehensive monograph reflecting on nearly three decades of architectural practice.
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The book was launched today evening at the Crowne Plaza Ballroom in Gulshan-2, Dhaka, at an event organised by Archiconnect and attended by architects, academics, planners, students, cultural figures and members of the media, marking a significant moment for contemporary architectural discourse in Bangladesh.
The evening opened with introductory remarks from Md Abrar Masum, co-founder of Archiconnect. He was followed by Dr Salahuddin Ahmed, founder of CARSA Foundation, who spoke about the cultural and scholarly value of recording architectural practices from the Global South within a global framework. Wahiduzzaman Ratul, senior architect at URBANA, then provided insight into the firm’s evolving design philosophy and long-term engagement with context-driven architecture.
Speaking at the event, Kashef Mahboob Chowdhury, the Aga Khan Award–winning architect and principal of URBANA, reflected on nearly thirty years of practice shaped by ecological vulnerability and social responsibility. He noted that in regions such as Bangladesh, architecture must move beyond form and aesthetics to respond meaningfully to climate pressures, human resilience and place.
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“This book is not a celebration of objects, but a reflection on processes—on how architecture emerges from restraint, context and empathy,” Chowdhury said, briefly outlining the ideas that informed the publication.
He added that the book opens with an image by Hélène Binet, one of the world’s most influential architectural photographers, setting the tone for a publication rooted in human experience rather than architectural self-assertion.
Published by Park Books of Zurich, “Meditations in Entropy” is the first full monograph on Chowdhury’s work. The 500-plus-page volume documents thirty years of practice through sketches, drawings, photographs and reflective texts, featuring eighteen realised projects across diverse typologies. Photography by internationally renowned architectural photographer Hélène Binet anchors the book visually, while critical essays by leading architectural thinkers including Kenneth Frampton, William J R Curtis, Robert McCarter, Ainun Nishat, and Philip Ursprung situate the work within broader global conversations.
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Professor Dr Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar, honourable adviser to the Ministry of Education, attended the programme as Chief Guest, while Reto Renggli, Ambassador of Switzerland to Bangladesh, joined as Guest of Honour.
Guest speakers including Dr Ainun Nishat, Professor Shamsul Wares and Dr Abu Sayeed M Ahmed highlighted the publication’s significance as a critical architectural document—one that positions Bangladeshi practice within global discourse while remaining firmly rooted in local realities.
At a time when environmental uncertainty increasingly defines the built world, “Meditations in Entropy” offers an important reminder that architecture’s most enduring strength may lie not in excess, but in attentiveness, humility and care.
