CHARLES CORREA “Architecture is sculpture with the gesture of human occupation” “ Cert Certai ainl nly y arch archit itec ectu ture re is conc concer erne ned d with with much much more more than than just just its its physical attributes. It is a many-layered many-layered thing. Beneath and beyond the strata of function and structure, materials and teture, lie the deepest and most compulsi!e layers of all “ Charles Correa was an architect, an urban planner, an activist and a theoretician. theoretici an. He was the face of modern architecture in India. r. r. Correa Correa pla!ed a de"nin# role in developin# architecture of post$Independence India and has desi#ned desi#ned some of the most most outstandin# structures. He is %nown %nown for adapt adaptin# in# oder odernis nistt tenets tenets to local local clima climates tes and buildi buildin# n# st!les. In the realm of urban plannin#, he is particularl! noted for his sensitivit! to the needs of the urban poor and for his use of traditional methods and materials. He was de"ned as a lateral thin%er and pioneer, desi#ned his pro&ects underpinnin# culture, vernacular content without overloo%in# the user's needs as well as cost and ener#! e(ciencies. Correa was born in H!derabad in )*+. He studied architecture at the -niversit! of ichi#an and at the assachusetts Institute of echnolo#! /I0, before returnin# returnin# to India to set up his own practice in )*12. Correa's earl! wor% combined traditional architectural values3i.e., the colonial colonial bun#alow, bun#alow, traditiona traditionall s!mmetr s!mmetrical ical space3wit space3with h the odernist odernist use of materials e4empli"ed b! "#ures such as Le Corbusier, Corbusier, Louis I. 5ahn,, and 6uc%minster 7uller 5ahn uller.. In particular, Correa was in8uenced b! Le Corbusier's use of stri%in# concrete forms. he importance of the site was a constant in Correa's approach. Comple Complemen mentin tin# # the Indian Indian landsc landscape ape,, he wor%e wor%ed d on an or#an or#anic ic and topo#r topo#raph aphic ic scale scale in earl! earl! commis commissio sions ns such such as his 9andhi 9andhi Smara Smara% % San#rahala!a /)*12:;+0 in Ahmedabad at the a#e of &ust <2 !ears and the Handlo Handloom om =avilio avilion n /)*120 /)*120 in >elhi. >elhi. Consid Considera eratio tions ns of the Indian Indian clim climat ate e also also drov drove e man! an! of Cor Correa's ea's deci decisi sio ons ns.. 7or resid esiden enti tial al commi commissi ssions ons,, he develo developed ped the ?tube ?tube house, house,@ @ a narr narrow house house form form desi#ned to conserve ener#!. his form was realied in the Ram%rishna House /)*;<:;B0 and the =are%h House /)*;;:;20, both in Ahmedabad, which has a hot and arid climate. Also in response to climate, Correa often emplo!ed a lar#e over$sailin# shade roof or parasol, an element "rst seen in the En#ineerin# Consultant India Limited comple4 /)*;1:;20 in H!derabad. He wor%ed on ma&or pro&ects includin# the State Assembl! for adh!a =radesh /)*;0, the 6harat 6havan arts comple4 in 6hopal /)*2<0, the Dation Dational al Craft Crafts s useu useum m in Dew Dew >elhi >elhi /)**0 /)**0 and the 6riti 6ritish sh Counci Councill buildin# in >elhi /)**+0.
His later wor%s, which continued his lon#$standin# interests, include Sur!a 5und /)*2;0 in >elhi the Inter$-niversit! Centre for Astrolo#! and Astroph!sics /)*22:*<0 in =une, aharashtra and the Fawahar 5ala 5endra arts comple4 /)*2;:*<0 in Faipur, Ra&asthan. 7rom )*21 to )*22 he served as chairman of India's Dational Commission on -rbaniation, and from )*** he served as a consultin# architect to the #overnment of 9oa. Correa desi#ned %eepin# in mind the rapid #rowth in hird Gorld Countries. He desi#ned settlements, which are low$rise and uic%l! built as well as have the potential of e4pansion. Correa avoided hi#h$rise housin# solutions, focusin# instead on low$rise solutions that, in combination with common spaces and facilities, emphasied the human scale and created a sense of communit!. he underpinnin# of culture as well as old architecture is the dominant factor for this manner. Correa stated $ “In this, the old architecture " especially !ernacular has so much to teach us, as it always de!elops a typology of fundamental sense.” He was chie8! responsible for the plannin# of 6elapur Housin# in Davi umbai in the )*s, and in )*2B he established umbais -rban >esi#n Research Institute, providin# a forum for interaction between architects, urban desi#ners and other professionals. He was named JIndias #reatest architectJ the same !ear, when he was awarded the Ro!al 9old edal b! the Ro!al Institute of 6ritish Architects. He also completed housin# pro&ects in >elhi, Ahmedabad, 6an#alore, while his most recent desi#ns include orontos Ismaili Centre and the 6rain Science Centre at his alma mater I. In )** he became the third recipient of the 9old edal from the International -nion of Architects, while his man! other accolades include the A#a 5han Award for Architecture /)**20 , Fapans =raemium Imperiale prie for architecture / )**B0, =adma Shree /)*<0 and the =adma Kibhushan : Indias second$hi#hest civilian award in <;.
