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Royal Academy annual lecture

Balkrishna Doshi to deliver Royal Academy annual architecture lecture 2017

Dezeen promotion: Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi, one of the most influential Indian architects of the 20th century and an important collaborator of Le Corbusier, will deliver the Royal Academy of Arts' annual architecture lecture this year.

Doshi has been a key figure in the development of low-cost housing and modern city planning in India, after leading Le Corbusier's projects in Ahmedabad and Chandigarh.

He becomes the 27th speaker in the prestigious lecture series organised by the Royal Academy of Arts, which has previously featured architects including Alvaro Siza, Peter Zumthor, Rafael Moneo and most recently Wang Shu.

Royal Academy annual lecture
Key projects by Balkrishna Doshi include the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore (1983). Photo courtesy of Vastu Shilpa Foundation

Dezeen is media partner for the annual architecture lecture 2017. It takes place at Burlington House on 10 July 2017, coinciding with both the architect's 90th birthday and the 70th anniversary of Indian independence.

With a career spanning 70 years, Doshi has committed much of his life to demonstrating how modern architectural principles can be adapted to suit local Indian traditions, resources and context.

Royal Academy annual lecture
His pioneering residential designs include Aranya Community Housing in Indore, which won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1995. Photo courtesy of Vastu Shilpa Foundation

As well as Ahmedabad and Chandigarh, his impressive portfolio of work – most of which was completed with his studio Vastu-Shilpa – includes pioneering residential designs, as well as cultural and educational facilities.

Key projects include the Ahmedabad School of Architecture (1968), the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore (1983), the Gandhi Labour Institute in Ahmedabad (1984), the National Institute of Fashion Technology in New Delhi (1989) and the experimental Amdavad ni Gufa Art Gallery (1995).

He also worked in collaboration with Louis Kahn on a project in Bangladesh.

Royal Academy annual lecture
Other designs by the architect include an experimental underground Amdavad ni Gufa Art Gallery (1995)

The Royal Academy's annual architecture lecture coincides with the institution's summer exhibition – one of the biggest events in the UK's art and design calendar, which this year features an architecture room curated by Farshid Moussavi.

Tickets for the lecture are available directly from the Royal Academy and cost £22, or £12 for concessions.

The event is supported by the Aga Khan Award for Architecture and Turkishceramics, and also forms part of the UK/India 2017 cultural programme organised by the British Council.

For more information, visit the Royal Academy's website.