Paolo Tommasi, the Italian architect artist who was the brain behind the Matri Mandir at Auroville passed away at 92 years on Thursday. The cause of death was reported as COVID-19. It was reported by the Hindu that he had been diagnosed with COVID-19 in June, and was admitted in JIPMER on July 2nd. He had been shifted to the ICU on July 15, after his health deteriorated.
He hailed from Ancona in Italy, and played the crucial role of helping the French architect Rodger Anger to design the Matri Mandir as well as the twelve gardens that surround it.
Tommasi also has the pride of having been one of the very few people alive to have interacted with The Mother. The Aurobindo Ashram in Puducherry, which was established by Mirra Alfasa, who was fondly referred to as The Mother by her followers, was established in 1968. She was the spiritual associate of Shri Aurobindo, who had established the universe township of Auroville.
Tommasi was closely associated with the Aurobindo Ashram throughout his lifetime, though he lived alone in an independent apartment near the ashram. He had permanently settled in Puducherry in 2010 and continued his artwork. His sketches and paintings were displayed in in various galleries around the world and Auroville.