About this talk

Running time: 19 minutes

Best known for his planning proposals for New Bombay, Charles Correa has practised architecture in India since 1958, and has received many awards and international recognition for his work. In the large variety of his projects there has always been a special emphasis on the crucial issue of climate control.

To build in India, he says in his talk, is to respond to climate, as it has never been possible to squander the kind of money and energy necessary to air-condition a building under the tropical sun. He sees this as an advantage because it means that the building itself, through its configuration, must provide the controls that the user needs. This kind of climate control involves the section, plan, shape, and very heart of the building; even generating new lifestyles in the necessary inventiveness. He uses examples of his own work as well as ancient designs to illustrate the points he makes.

He thinks that the energy crisis could well produce a response to climate that will give architecture the structure it so urgently needs.