Christopher Charles Benninger
Prof. Dr. Christopher Charles Benninger | |
|---|---|
Benninger in 2016 | |
| Born | 23 November 1942 Hamilton, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | 2 October 2024 (aged 81) India House, Pune, Maharashtra, India |
| Alma mater | Harvard Graduate School of Design MIT University of Florida |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | Great Master Architect of India IIA Excellence in Architecture Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa) in Architecture, CEPT University |
| Practice | CCBA Designs |
| Buildings | Mahindra United World College Suzlon One Earth Corporate Headquarters Azim Premji University Supreme Court of Bhutan, UN House, Ministry Buildings Lodha Belmondo College of Engineering Pune Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad IIM Calcutta Parliament of Burundi Bajaj Institute of Technology Green Valley Global Headquarters China |
| Projects | Site and Services EWS Housing at Arrambakkan, Jamnagar, Yusufgowda Thane and Kalyan Development Plan SOS Children's Villages at New Delhi and Kolkatta Thimphu Structure Plan |
| Website | ccba |
Christopher Charles Benninger (23 November 1942 – 2 October 2024) was an Indian architect and urban planner. Born in the United States, he permanently migrated to India in 1971. Benninger contributed to the field of critical regionalism and sustainable planning in India.
Following his departure from the position of professor at Harvard in 1971, Benninger came to Ahmedabad, where he was appointed a Ford Foundation advisor to the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology. At CEPT, he co-founded the Faculty of Planning with Yoginder Alagh and BV Doshi in 1972. He also founded the Center for Development Studies and Activities in 1976 with Aneeta Gokhale Benninger. He served on the board of directors of CEPT University. In 2024, he was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa) in Architecture from CEPT University.
He worked with various banks concerning policies, and with various countries and states to create development plans. Alongside architecture, Benninger is most identified with developing the Site and Services Model which was originally conceived as his thesis at Harvard GSD and his planning theory Principles of Intelligent Urbanism.
Benninger wrote three books, Christopher Benninger: Architecture for a Modern India (2015), a collection of his works, and Letters to a Young Architect (2011), a collection of lectures and articles, which is a bestseller in India. In October 2024, Great Expectations: Notes to an Architect, a sequel to his 2011 book was released posthumously.
Benninger's architectural studio CCBA Designs, which he founded with Ramprasad Akkisetti, is based out of Pune, which specialises in sustainable design solutions.