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This housing project offers the quality of life of a village with thesophistication of a city. Each cluster permits the emergence of ahyperlocal community feeling, while integrating each house to the wholesettlement at different levels. The hierarchy itself is very organic, as thediagram beside shows. The cluster modules are very simple, yet theyare related to each other in a complex way.

The 55 hectare Artist Village brings an interesting mix of Goan

atmosphere and culture to Belapur. Designed by Indian architectCharles Correa, the project is a testimony to the capabilities of a geniusurban designer when he thinks beyond design. Built for middle andlower income groups, the village is organic in its design and execution.Charles Correa, in providing a housing solution for mixed incomegroups in Mumbai, derives from traditional building styles that havebeen severed from the built environment in urban cities altogether. Heresuscitates the courtyard style of buildings, which inherently havecommunal spaces built within their layout.

His housing project is a blend of the quality of life of a village and thesophistication of a city. Each cluster permits the emergence of a hyper-local community feeling, while integrating each house to the wholesettlement at different levels; the hierarchy itself is very organic. Theclustered organisation and overall layout seem to function pretty well,as the movement through it is varied, rich and dense and the scalechanges are in harmony.

Despite the projects relatively small site, the architect managed toendow every home with its own private open-to-sky space and ashared courtyard. The communitys site plan divides the units intogroups of 21, further subdividing them into seven-unit clusters.Individual houses rely on simple floor plans and building methods,enabling local masons and craftspeople to construct them. Thecourtyard serves the necessity for a protected family private communalspace. The village was produced with the idea that the residents weregoing to alter it in many ways, making it truly their own, therefore homesare freestanding, so residents can add on to them as their familiesgrow; and differently priced plans appeal to a wide variety of incomelevels. The development supports Correas theory that low-risearchitecture and high-density planning are not contradictory approaches

to housing.

Report on Chaerls Coreas Artist VillageCluster Pattern

Presented bystd. no. 0601031