Building Type Year 1982

Housing

Asian Games Village was built in 1982 to house athletes for the games. 500
housing units were designed as a group housing in 35 acres. The aim was to create an urban pattern of low rise high density based on a sequence of open spaces linked by shaded pedestrian pathways. The peripheral roads are connected to the cul-de-sac parking squares which in turn give way to individual garages or car porches attached to the houses or apartment blocks. The concept is based on a sequence of open spaces, interlinked with narrow pedestrian streets shaded and kept alive through a careful mix with recreational and communal area. The streets are consciously broken up into visually comprehensible units, often with gateways, so there are pauses, point of rest and changing vistas. The central spline of the layout is reserved for pedestrian courts and streets of various clusters. About eight percent of the houses and apartments have access from pedestrian enclosures as well as parking squares. Drawing on earlier urban housing models, Rewal's Asian Games Village in New Delhi used a network of streets and squares with vehicular access at either end of the site. Its morphology resembles a traditional village, with cubic solids and voids that are characteristic of the Indian urban fabric (compare with cities such as Jaisalmer Old Delhi). They offer shade and yet remain vitally alive to the pressures and pleasures of the people who live there. Entrance gateways with linked upper terraces punctuate the sequence of courtyard and garden spaces.

City: Ahmedabad, RAMAKRISHNA HOUSE

Market Area: Residential Buildings Type: Apartment Block Project Year: 1964 This large residence, built for one of Ahmedabad's mill owners, is based on the spatial and climatic concepts developed in the Tube House and the Hindustan Lever Pavillion. The plan sets up a series of parallel bearing walls, punctuated by interior courts and "canon", climaxing in the living room which opens out onto the main garden to the south. The house is placed at the northern end of the site so as to maximize the size of this garden and to enhance the spatial sequence of getting there. KANCHENJUNGA APARTMENTS:

The building had to be oriented east west to capture prevailing sea breeze and views to the city. But also the orientation for hot sun and heavy rains Solution in old bungalows wrapping a protective layer of verandahs around the main living areas Kanchanjunga an attempt to apply these principles to a high-rise building This building has 32 different apartments with 4 types of flats varying from 3 to 6 bedrooms. Interlocking of these variations expressed externally by shear end walls that hold up the cantilevers Minimalist surfaces cut away to open up double-height terrace gardens at the corners Complex spatial organization of living spaces Superficially, this 28-story tower, with its concrete construction and large areas of white panels, bears a strong resemblance to modern apartment buildings in the West Towers proportion 1:4 (21 sqm and 84 m high) Garden terraces actually a modern interpretation of a feature of the traditional Indian bungalow: the verandah Each apartment provided with a deep, two-story-high garden terrace that is oriented away from the sun so as to afford protection from the elements

Charles Correa:
Education

1946-1948 inter-science. St. Xaviers college, university of Bombay 1949-1955 B.Arch., University of Michigan. 1953-1955 M.Arch., Massachusetts institute of technology. Professional Experience

1955-1958 partner with G.M. BHUTA associates 1958- to date in private practice.

1964-1965 prepared master plan proposing twin city across the harbor from Bombay. 1969-1971 invited by the govt. of Peru 1971-1975 chief architect to CIDCO 1975-1976 consultant to UN secretory-general for HABITAT 1975-1983 Chairman Housing Urban Renewal & Ecology Board 1985 chairman dharavavi palnning commision Charles Correa, in full Charles Mark Correa (born September 1, 1930, Secunderabad, India), Indian architect and urban planner known for adapting Modernist tenets to local climates and building styles. In the realm of urban planning, he is particularly noted for his sensitivity to the needs of the urban poor and for his use of traditional methods and materials.

Correa began his studies at Saint Xaviers College at the University of Bombay (now Mumbai), and he went on to study at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor (194953) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts (1953 55). In 1958 he established his own Bombay-based professional practice.

Correas early work combined traditional architectural valuesi.e., the colonial bungalow, traditional symmetrical spacewith the Modernist use of materials exemplified by figures such as Le Corbusier, Louis I. Kahn, and Buckminster Fuller. In particular, Correa was influenced by Le Corbusiers use of striking concrete forms. The importance of the site was a constant in Correas approach. Complementing the Indian landscape, he worked on an organic and topographic scale in early commissions such as his Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya (195863) in Ahmedabad and the Handloom Pavilion (1958) in Delhi. Considerations of the Indian climate also drove many of Correas 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 (196264) and the Parekh House (196668), both in Ahmedabad, which has a hot and arid climate. Also 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 (196568) 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 living and housing for many who lived across the harbour from the city limits. 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 in New Bombay (198386). 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 later works, which continued his long-standing interests, include Surya Kund (1986) in Delhi; the Inter-University Centre for Astrology and Astrophysics (198892) in Pune, Maharashtra; and the Jawahar Kala Kendra arts complex (198692) in Jaipur, Rajasthan. From 1985 to 1988 he served as chairman of Indias National Commission on Urbanisation, and from 1999 he served as a consulting architect to the government of Goa. Correa has taught in many universities, both in India and abroad, including MIT and Harvard University (both in Cambridge, Massachusetts) and the University of London. His many awards include the Royal Gold Medal for Architecture from the Royal Institute of British Architects; the Praemium Imperiale prize for architecture (1994), awarded by the Japan Art Association; and the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (1998). AWARDS:

1961 Prize for low-income housing early 1972 Correa was awarded the PadmaShri by the President of India 1980 Correa was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Michigan 1984 He was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal 1985 Prize for the Improvement in the Quality of Human Settlements from the International Union of Architects. 1986 Chicago Architecture Award. 1987 the Gold Medal of the Indian Institute of Architects 1990 the Gold Medal of the UIA (International Union of Architects) 1994 the Premium Imperial from Japan society of art. 1999 Aga khan award for vidhan sabha, bhopal Diversity In Bombay Salvacao Church at Dadar ; Kanchanjunga Apartments In Goa for the Cidade de Goa Hotel and the Kala Academy, In Ahmedabad Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya ; Ramkrishna House Delhi The LIC Centre; British Council Building Institute of British Architects

Kerala Kovalam Beach Resort Hotel Andamans Bay Island Hotel in Port Blair Architectural utility and grandeur spread over the subcontinent Principles Few cardinal principles in his vast body of work; incrementality pluralism participation income generation equity open-to-sky space disaggregation. Belapur housing being the one project where he has literally used these principles Correa and Corbusier Like most architects of his generation he has been influenced by Le Corbusier , but by his response to the Mediterranean sun with his grand sculptural decisions he believes that Corbusiers influence in the colder climates has not been beneficial because these heroic gestures had to withdraw into defensible space, into mechanically heated (and cooled). By developing climatic solutions for different sites and programs, Indian architect Charles Correa designed the Kanchanjunga Apartments. Located in Mumbai, the U.S. equivalent of New York City in terms of population and diversity, the 32 luxury apartments are located south-west of downtown in an upscale suburban setting embodying the characteristics of the upper echelon of society within the community. The Kanchanjunga Apartments are a direct response to the present culture, the escalating urbanization, and the climatic conditions for the region. They pay homage to the vernacular architecture that once stood on the site before the development in a number of ways. More on Kanchanjunga Apartments after the break. In Mumbai, a building has to be oriented east-west to catch prevailing sea breezes and to open up the best views of the city. Unfortunately, these are also the directions of the hot sun and the heavy monsoon rains. The old bungalows solved these problems by wrapping a protective layer of verandas around the main living areas, thus providing the occupants with two lines of defense against the elements.

Correa pushed his capacity for ingenious cellular planning to the limit, as is evident from the interlock of four different apartment typologies varying from 3 to 6 bedrooms each. Smaller displacements of level were critical in this work in that they differentiated between the external earth filled terraces and the internal elevated living volumes. These subtle shifts enable Correa to effectively shield these high rise units from the effects of both the sun and monsoon rains. This was largely achieved by providing the tower with relatively deep, garden verandas, suspended in the air. Clearly, such an arrangement had its precedent in the cross-over units of Le Corbusiers Unite d Habitation built in Marseilles in 1952, although here in Mumbai the sectional provision was achieved without resorting to the extreme of differentiating between up-and-down going units. The building is a 32 story reinforced concrete structure with 6.3m cantilevered open terraces. The central core is composed of lifts and provides the main structural element for resisting lateral loads. The central core was constructed ahead of the main structure by slip method of construction. This technique was used for the first time in India for a multistory building. The concrete construction and large areas of white panels bears a strong resemblance to modern apartment buildings in the West, perhaps due to Correas western education. However, the garden terraces of the Kanchanjunga Apartments are actually a modern interpretation of a feature of the traditional Indian bungalow: the veranda. Architect: Charles Correa Location: Mumbai, India Project Year: 1970-1983.

Pragati Maidan

is a venue for large exhibitions and conventions in New Delhi, and with 72,000 sq. metres of exhibition space, it is Delhi's largest exhibition centre. The overall layout and project was designed by architect Raj Rewal,who also designed some key buildings such as the Hall of Nations.[2] It was inaugurated on 3 November 1972 by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, on the eve of the International Trade Fair called Asia 72.,[3][4] It covers over 150 acres (0.61 km2) overlooking the historic Purana Qila, which stands opposite Gate no 1, Pragati Maidan is flanked by Mathura Road to its West and Bhairon Road on the South. To its east runs the main railway line to Central and Southern India. Pragati Maidan is situated in Central Delhi. Pragati Maidan offers about 61,290 sq. metres of covered exhibition space in 16 halls, besides 10,000 sq. metres of open display area.[6] The complex houses 18 exhibition halls,[7] several buildings, eateries, performance spaces and compounds, including headquarters of the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), and hosts over 70 national and international exhibitions annually, with the largest being the India International Trade Fair.

The Institue For Indology building in Ahmedabad was one of Balkrishna Doshi's
first public buildings as a solo artist outside of Le Corbusier's office. At this stage Doshi is deep in the shadow of his previous employer, although some individual developments are already starting to surface - mainly in the idea to store the collection of Indological documents in an open-to-outside-air basement, preserving the climatic conditions under which they'd previously been kept. Also, the peripheral ambulatory/shade zone is typologically Indian. It can also be thought of, here, as a kind of thickening of the brise-soleil into occupiable space (as opposed to the bold thickening of the sun-breakers' actual mass in Corbusier's own Indian buildings). But at that point we're chasing ourselves in circles - wasn't the brise-soleil itself in some sense inspired by these kinds of interstitial spaces sheltered behind screens. The composition, meanwhile, is quite familiar - this is a near cousin to the elevation of the unbuilt Governor's Mansion for Chandigarh. Of course, since Doshi was in the office for that project, it's again hard to say where exactly the idea originated. The Indology building in Ahmedabad was one of Doshi's first public buildings as a solo artist outside of Corb's office. At this stage, Doshi is deep in the shadow of his previous employer, although some individual developments are already starting to surface - mainly in the idea to store the collection of Indological documents in an open-to-outside-air basement, preserving the climatic conditions under which they'd previously been kept. There are also some ideas about the site section being intended to draw breezes up and over the central plaza; I'm not sure how successful all of this ended up being, but it does suggest priorities slightly displaced from those of the old boss.

Also, the peripheral ambulatory/shade zone is typologically Indian, and for good reason of thermal comfort, as any of my Georgian friends who've spent time on a good deep porch in the Summer can probably understand. Given that it's materialized in concrete, though, it also reads as a kind of thickening of the brise-soleil into occupiable space (as opposed to the bold thickening of the sun-breakers' mass into sculptural elements in Corbusier's Indian buildings). But at that point we're chasing ourselves in circles - wasn't the brisesoleil itself in some sense inspired by these kinds of interstitial spaces, sheltered behind screens, in vernacular architecture?

The composition, meanwhile, is quite familiar - this is a near cousin to the elevation of the unbuilt Governor's Mansion for Chandigarh. Doshi was closely attached to that project, so perhaps he used this building as a chance to work out an idea that didn't get realized a few years before.

Check out the brutal exposed concrete (weathering horribly in this climate) and the complex but abstract articulation that breaks the composition down, into what I suspect are Modulor-sized units. The elevation has a charming brittleness with all those thin vertical elements - - like a house of sticks re-rendered as a house of stone. This isn't quite Doshi at his most Brutalist, but even so, we get a real sense here of an already-divergent sensibility.

Steele, if I remember correctly, suggests that Doshi would take a hard look at his own early projects, particularly in terms of performance under the climate, and began modulating his work in response. This seems basically correct to me; there are certain elements in this building that you will not see again in Doshi, particularly the vast, brutal plaza between the museum block and the Institute. While a scenic setting for photos of marching monkeys, it wouldn't be at all pleasant in full sun.

(Speaking of full sun - this batch of photos will alternate between "day" and "evening"; I first visited in the very late afternoon and took what shots I could; I then had to meet someone near this building on another day and figured I'd pick up some more well-lit views.) The main body of the building, behind the screen of the verandahs, is actually clad with this nicely veined, greenish stone (marble?) You don't really get the full richness of it, either because it's just dusty and worn or because it misses a bit of polish or something. Naturally it never gets rained on, which would otherwise do lovely things. Anyway, I wish there were color photos from the time of first construction - seeing this only in black and white misses this part of the story.