“You cannot look at cities without wandering into architecture on the one hand and politics on the other,” writes Charles Correa. His seminal writing ‘A Place In the Shade’ is an anthology of essays, interviews, and thoughts on housing, urbanization, the sacred, and the metaphysical strung together as episodes.
In the first chapter, he raises the rhetorical question on sequences in architecture, which incidentally aligns well with the sequence of chapters in this book- questioning if an arbitrary and episodic narrative can ever express the control and the discipline required of a holistic, well-curated thought. Read ahead to dig deeper into the first four chapters of the book.
“A Place in the Shade” delves into the architectural and urban challenges prevalent in India, ranging from the adaptation of housing as a means to cope with the frequently harsh climate to the profound philosophical significance of architecture as a reflection of the cosmos. Through a series of reflective and thought-provoking essays, Charles Correa argues for the necessity of our built environment to align with key factors such as climate, culture, and financial constraints. Correa keenly identifies the pivotal issues at the heart of India’s rapid urbanization, shedding light on the transformative processes shaping the country’s urban landscape.
In this review, the articulation of the essays and chapters are analyzed to understand Architect Charles Correa’s voice, the points of emphasis and priority, the tone of his narration, and the specific style of writing he has followed. Specific chapters are explored to discern these factors and understand the genius behind “A Place in the Shade”.
Hornby trains, Chinese gardens, and architecture
This is the introductory chapter that gives the first glimpse of Charles Correa as a personality, the primary narrator, and the protagonist spearheading his ideologies.
He begins this story – and it is a story elucidating on the various value systems he holds dear to his consciousness as an Architect and Urban Planner – by taking the readers back to his childhood. He recollects a fragment of his childhood playtime, providing the readers a sense of relatability in identifying memories as a potent source of stimulus for decisions made as adults.
The Hornby Tinplate tracks take center stage as the idiosyncratic subject in this chapter, underscoring Charles Correa’s childhood fascination. The emphasis is placed on the significance of ‘movement patterns’ and the requirement for these patterns to present something fresh on each occasion. He writes, “That was the marvelous thing about those old tinplate rails. They had flexibility. Every time one finished playing, back they went into their wooden box- to be reincarnated the next day in a totally new formation.” (Correa, 2010). He even relates and makes a comparison to the Japanese gardens for the sequence of newness they present around every turn, over every stone bridge, pond, and so forth.
The tone of this chapter relies on the interconnected milieus between seemingly unrelated topics- brought to relevance as only Charles Correa could, considering the Film Rashomon as another example of variations iterated amongst a set variety of pieces. Drawing parallels with the Taintracks and the components of Japanese gardens.
His deep-seated conviction regarding the liberating potential of playthings is expressed with the same solemnity and evocative language as he would in his treatises on the seven cardinal principles of housing.
The Assembly at Chandigarh & What One Learned From Corbusier
As an admirer and keen commentator of the works of Le Corbusier, Charles Correa dedicated a few of his thought-provoking chapters to dissecting the brains behind the masterpieces of Corbusier, affectionately addressing the Pioneer as “Corb”.
These chapters unveiled the original architectural writer of India at the turn of the century and the evocative storyteller for his dramatic passages, and masterful command of painting vivid visuals. Regarding the Assembly at Chandigarh, he says, “One approaches closer and closer to the complex, and the bleached whiteness deepens slowly into the gray-green of concrete, the simple outlines of the masses dissolve into an astonishing voluptuous complexity of shadow and substance.” (Correa, 2010) The visual and tactile experience of the sciography he witnessed in the Assembly hall is conveyed to precision, bringing the monolithic structure to life.
It is also noteworthy to explore how Correa discusses Corbusier’s works. The camaraderie and admiration he holds is evident in his voice, while the architectural commentary is personal to Correa’s own experience of the structures. He writes that Corbusier is more absorbed with the visual language, and although it is masterful he comments how it’s just one facet of architecture. The honesty and conviction in his commentary is spell-binding.
As discussed earlier, Charles Correa uses analogies of children’s games and annotates authors who speak along the same lines as him. An example of this is his dramatic exclamation of Steen Eiler Rasmussen’s words on Corbusier’s buildings: games of boxes and chairs for children! Where the children see a motor car in the assemblage, and others question if it can move like a motor car. This yields no answer as children do not understand the question posed; they see a motor car regardless. This narration declares Charles Correa a master of simplifying ideologies and concepts for all to comment on, promoting inclusivity in discussion post-study of these essays.
The conclusion of this chapter portrays Charles Correa’s style of writing hinging on bringing together topics to a full circle, with a poetic conclusion at the perfect juncture. He began this chapter with the poem ‘Acrobat’ written by Corbusier (portraying himself as an acrobat through interpretation) and concludes it by morosely speaking of the search for the tension wire and the figure of the acrobat in the skylines of Berlin, Tokyo, and Paris. “Where has he gone?”, he writes and answers by soberly proclaiming that perhaps he is old, his act is over and he is on earth again, amongst us.
A Place In The Sun
Poetically titled and resembling the book, this was an essay Charles Correa penned as a crossover between his experience of western and Indian habitats and his philosophy of Open-to-sky spatial configurations.
Spoken from the first perspective, the essay states the context of the writer and the written by establishing the climatic differences Correa felt from his residence in London as opposed to the premise of his Asian-centric essays. The transportive quality of his writing is a recurring pattern of the storytelling he engages in. “…‘A Place in the Sun’ does what I wish it to do, namely, in one fell swoop, lift us out of this freezing northern European weather into a faraway clime…”, (Correa, 2010) he writes.
He contrasts the “simplistic duality” of Miesian architecture where Inside and Outside exist with an established threshold and the “spatial pluralism” of Indian architecture. A room opens up to a verandah, traversing down a courtyard, under a tree, and possibly over a terrace with pergola. The lines are blurred, and amorphous and tied to Correa’s earlier affinity toward a variety of formations and movement patterns. He addresses the common misconception held by the West about these Indian spaces, ensuring that they are anything but ad hoc solutions; but crafted with intent, mindful of the warm climate. He relates the spatial experience that open-to-sky places offer to that of the primordial memory of mankind; triggering a dormant sensation. Terms like quasi-mystical, primordial landscape, and metaphysical are repetitive in these essays where Correa is enamored with delving into the innate sacredness of spaces that are designed in Indian architecture.
Charles Correa further combats the idea that designing spaces that connect with the primordial memory doesn’t have to stem from monumental endeavors. He asserts that they can be sensed even in projects of humbler scales. His treatises are both political in nature and economical in execution as he theorized and practiced that habitats need local craftsmanship- both to generate revenue and develop ownership of the resource (the space that is occupied by the people)
Correa imparts his essays with nuances he absorbed from his learnings of political histories, and leaders, irrespective of his affinities toward both. The application of these ideologies he imbues into his seminal writings is testimony to his enigmatic personality. He implores people to look at the genius of Mahatma Gandhi (at various intervals in the numerous chapters of this book) and Mao Tse Tung to stitch new ideas into old fabric and manifest wonders into reality. This he writes concerning striking a balance between inventiveness and disposing of history. He says there are “great events” and also “great issues”, and we are only as big as the questions we address. The final Coda of this essay is part of the pattern in writing he employs to leave the readers contemplative.
The Public, The Private, and the Sacred
The sacred real is heavily explored here and Charles Correa states that the principal vestibules to communicate the notions of the sacred are religion, philosophy, and the arts. He takes an opinion on the presence of sacred realms in different countries and their ability to leave the strongest impressions on the people. For example, Italy for its most revered, sacred architecture and France for its secularity that is devoid of many sacred gestures.
Of a lot of regions around the world, Correa considers Japan’s troika of public, private, and the sacred to be imminent and even exemplifies it with the dramatic: “To the Japanese, Mount Fuji is sacred; to the Swiss, Mont Blanc is just a very high mountain.” (Correa, 2010) He also establishes the intent of the essay to surround the importance of the sacred realm in understanding traditional Indian Architecture.
The Vedic Altar, Vastu Purush Mandalas, and Yantra are some sacred and mathematical semiotics prevalent in Indian architecture. Correa took great interest in these formulations and spoke extensively about them in his essay.
Third-world countries are overrun by distress immigration and this leads to thriving urban centers with doubled population and squatter settlements increased by five-fold, says Charles Correa. And as an architect and urban planner he prioritizes the dialogue on equity in design for the urban poor by asking how ‘architecture’ can be made relevant to the millions of people ridden by poverty.
To make the topic relatable, and easy to visualize he throws light on the contemporary image of dreams and ambitions or as he constitutes “mythic imagery”: TV antennae, Neon Light fixtures in households and nylon saris are some examples of modern success that would stand in tandem with Bhindis on forehead, Yantra on the wall and rangoli patterns on thresholds.
The most evocative of his statements is when he says habitats are the compulsive expressions of beliefs and aspirations that are central to our lives. This becomes the point of emphasis in the essay with clear storytelling.
In the Shadow’s Embrace: Concluding Thoughts
In this book, he showcased numerous concepts he deemed crucial for urban living in India. This endeavor served as a platform to illustrate his seven ‘cardinal principles’ for housing in the Third World, as outlined by Correa (2010): Open-to-sky space, Incrementality, Pluralism, Participation Income Generation, Equity, and Disaggregation.
These principles stemmed from Correa’s deep-seated concern for housing to address the distinctive requirements of the impoverished in third-world cities. In this discourse, he spoke fervently about Bombay in terms of its Planning, treatment of pedestrian movement, Marine drive, Transportation, and Housing.
This review is but a fragment of the genius worked into the book wherein Charles Correa had also discussed the Museum typology, the Planning of Goa, his ruminations on Mahatma Gandhi, Dissecting the works of Corbusier, the metaphysical explorations from his practice and theories, and other sub-categories investigating the Urban Manifesto and Urbanization in Third World countries.
Charles Correa’s voice and clarity of his thoughts are transported on paper with the nuances of a storyteller; never esoteric and always accessible for the architects, designers, planners, philosophers, economists, and importantly, the people who would benefit from his ruminations.
References:
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- Correa, C (2010). A Place in The Shade: A New Landscape and other essays. Berlin: Hatje Cantz Verlag
- Shivkumar, R (2018) Charles Correa: Imagining the City and the Home for Modern India [online]. Available at: https://www.sahapedia.org/charles-correa-imagining-the-city-and-the-home-modern-india [Accessed date: 03/02/2024].
- DHNS (2010) Inside Correa’s mind Rethinking urban space [online]. Available at: https://www.deccanherald.com/features/inside-correas-mind-2505000 [Accessed date: 03/02/2024].
- ThinkMatter Book: A Place In The Shade By Charles Correa [online]. Available at https://thinkmatter.in/2014/09/05/a-place-in-the-shade-by-charles-correa/ [Accessed date: 03/02/2024]
