Minnette de Silva, once one of the world’s most renowned female architects, designed her second house in 1952 in Alfred House Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. This house, raised on columns and sheltered by a limestone wall, stands as one of the few remaining structures amidst Colombo’s rapid urban development. The home, built for the Pieris family, features de Silva’s hallmark design elements: open courtyards, verandahs, and a staircase leading to the second floor where the bedrooms and kitchen are located. The bedrooms, divided by teak cupboards allowing for airflow, highlight her innovative use of space.
De Silva, the daughter of a reformist politician and suffragette, was Sri Lanka’s first modernist architect and the first Asian woman to become an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects. She defied her father’s opposition to her career, studying in Mumbai and later in London, where she became a prominent figure in high society, known for her silk saris and connections with influential figures like Le Corbusier, Picasso, and Laurence Olivier. Upon returning to Sri Lanka after its independence in 1948, she established her architectural practice, one of only two women in the world to do so at the time.
Her designs, including the Pieris house, merged modernist architecture with traditional craftsmanship, often employing local artisans. Her work extended beyond private residences; in the 1950s, she designed a groundbreaking housing scheme for public servants in Kandy, involving future residents in the design process, a participatory approach well ahead of its time. She also experimented with cost-effective and sustainable building methods, as seen in the Fernando townhouse in Colombo, which incorporated indigenous techniques like rammed earth technology.
Despite her pioneering work, de Silva’s contributions have been largely overshadowed by her male contemporaries, particularly Geoffrey Bawa. Her achievements were belatedly recognized, and by the end of her life, she was marginalized and in financial difficulties. De Silva died in 1998, isolated and largely forgotten, her architectural legacy neglected. However, her influence persists in some of Colombo’s more progressive architecture, though her work remains underappreciated in her home country.
