The ineffable in Charles Correa

Book excerpt: Charles Correa – seen by many in India as a sort of guru, as someone capable to transcend and grasp the ineffable reality that surrounds us – has left his noteworthy architectural heritage across the globe. In 2013, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) celebrated him as one of the greatest contemporary urban planners showcasing his work in an exhibition called: “Charles Correa: India’s greatest architect”. Profoundly tied to my Indian origins, to me Correa has been the master over distance, a personal benchmark to set my goals against. He was my inspiring thinker, architect and urbanist, or simply said, the designer I would have liked to be. Many of Correa’s last works show his deep-rooted search of the highest spiritual dimension in the attempt to trap part of the cosmic energy surrounding us into architectural works that were – and are – the shadow of his soul.