CHARLES MARK

CORREA

Born: 1 September 1930, Secunderabad

Died: 16 June 2015, Mumbai
Alma mater: University of Mumbai
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
University of Michigan
Occupation: Architect
Urban planner

Anagha Parvathi
SEM VI Krupanidhi Rakshitha
Muskan Sushmitha
CHARLES CORREA, WAS BORN ON 1 SEPTEMBER 1930
• Began his higher studies in Mumbai. He went on to study at the University of Michigan, where Buckminster
Fuller was his teacher, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he obtained his master's degree.

• In 1958, Charles Correa established his own professional practice in

Mumbai. His first significant project was the Mahatma Gandhi
Sangrahalaya (Mahatma Gandhi Memorial) at Sabarmati Ashram in
Ahmedabad, followed by the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly in
Bhopal. In 1961, he designed his first high-rise building. On the National
Crafts Museum in New Delhi, he introduced "the rooms open to the
sky", his systematic use of courtyards.
• From 1970–75, Charles Correa was Chief Architect for New Bombay (Navi Mumbai), where he was strongly
involved in extensive urban planning of the new city. In 1984, Charles Correa founded the Urban Design
Research Institute in Bombay, dedicated to the protection of the built environment and improvement of urban
communities. During the final four decades of his life, Correa has done pioneering work in urban issues and
low-cost shelter in the Third World. In 1985, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi appointed him Chairman of the
National Commission on Urbanization.

CHARLES CORREA
• Correa’s early work combined traditional architectural values—as embodied in the bungalow with its veranda and the open-air courtyard—with the Modernist
use of materials exemplified by figures such as Le Corbusier, Louis I. Kahn, and Buckminster Fuller.
• Correa was influenced by Le Corbusier’s use of striking concrete forms.
• The importance of the site was a constant in Correa’s approach.
• Complementing the Indian landscape, he worked on an organic and topographic scale in early commissions such as his Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya (1958–
63) in Ahmedabad and the Handloom Pavilion (1958) in Delhi. Considerations of the Indian climate also drove many of Correa’s decisions.
• For residential commissions, he developed the “tube house,” a narrow house form designed to conserve energy. This form was realized in the Ramkrishna
House (1962–64) and the Parekh House (1966–68), both in Ahmedabad, which has a hot and arid climate.
• In response to climate, Correa often employed a large oversailing shade roof or parasol, an element first seen in the Engineering Consultant India Limited
complex (1965–68) in Hyderabad.
• In the late 1960s Correa began his career as an urban planner, creating New Bombay (now Navi Mumbai), an urban area that provided housing and job
opportunities for many who lived across the harbour from the original city.
• When designing in the midst of overpopulated cities, he tried to create quasi-rural housing environments, as is evident in his low-cost Belapur housing sector
(1983–86) in Navi Mumbai.
• In all of his urban planning commissions, Correa avoided high-rise housing solutions, focusing instead on low-rise solutions that, in combination with common
spaces and facilities, emphasized the human scale and created a sense of community.
• His ideas describe the different ways of attaining wonderful designs within the vernacular range and climatic conditions. Correa worked in a wide range of
areas throughout his life. Starting from Mumbai, he had been working on projects across India and overseas. He attained fame in the world of architecture for
his low cost and state of the art designs. Water recycling, energy renewal, habitat friendly systems, topographical extents with some twist of light and air are the
principles behind his eye.
• Correa didn’t see tradition and modernity as mutually exclusive – he honoured the ‘sacred gestures’ and ‘mythic beliefs’ that have informed Indian architecture
for thousands of years and wanted to ‘reinvent them in terms of new aspirations’.
• He respected the Indian vernacular architecture by using local materials that were best suited to the social needs and environmental conditions. Using resources
that were readily available also meant there was no need to import goods, which helped reduce the expense of each project, but also provided much-needed
work for local craftsmen.
• He also understood the importance of being connected to the great outdoors – the sky has a profound sacred meaning in the Hindu religion – and Correa didn’t
want external space to be a luxury only reserved for those who could afford it. Even the Belapur modular housing solutions he created for the satellite city he
designed, ‘Navi Mumbai’, included shared courtyards for every family to use. This ‘open-to-sky’ concept also incorporates his innovative passive methods of
heating and cooling buildings; often Correa’s work features pergolas, verandahs, open courtyards and terraces, with a focus on quality of light, circulation of air
and plenty of shade.
•YOU
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RAMKRISHNA HOUSE

ANAGHA S.
 • Location : Shahibag, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
R • Architect: Charles Correa
a • Construction : 1962 – 1964
m
k
• The design of the house is closely connected to the climatic challenges.
r
• The long and narrow shape as well as the openings in the roof are important for the
I
flow of air.
s
• The openings in the roof are angled to minimize the heat that are absorbed inside.
h
n
a

h The number of doors and

windows are minimized to
o improve the air movement
u in the house.
s
e
 • The house is situated in the north edge of the site to maximize the garden in south,
A which the main living areas are faced towards.
b • Constructed using exposed brick and concrete, with a number parallel load bearing
o walls punctuated with internal courtyards and skylights.
u • The flooring was polished kola stone in a luminous color.
t • The Ramakrishna House is a G+1 structure built for one of Ahmedabad’s wealthy
mill owners.

t As Ahmedabad experiences
h hot-dry climate, top light
e cannon openings have been
provided so that the hot air
is ventilated out.
h These openings also
provides natural lighting for
o the house.
u
s
e
 a) On the ground floor is the family living/entertaining area, the guest room
with its own garden, kitchen, and the service room.
b) A more private family area, is located on the upper floor, with additional
bedrooms spanning across the main facade overlooking the garden.
• Giving the structure a frame are two staircases rising in opposite directions to
P the upper level.

L
A
N
s