Le Corbusier is known as the father of modern architecture. Le Corbusier’s full name was Charles-Edouard Jeanneret. He was born on 6th October 1887 in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930. His career spans to more than five decades and it is embellished with his designed buildings all over Japan, Europe, North and South America and as far as India.
He was the mastermind behind urban planning and urban development of the cities. Alongside being an architecture, he was also a flourished writer, painter and an urban designer. Le Corbusier never pursued professional education for architecture though he had a great eye for visual arts.
Early Life
Le Corbusier was a magician when it came to combining functionalism and bold sculptural expressionism. He openly promoted geometric forms and open efficient spaces. Le Corbusier started his journey as an architect by self-learning at the libraries. He used to spend days in libraries, reading about architecture and philosophy and then visiting museums and sketching buildings alongside constructing their small models. In 1907, He started making voyages outside Switzerland to gain exposure in his field of architecture. He went to Italy, Germany and finally settled in Paris, France and started working there as a draftsman in the office of architect Auguste Perret, who is considered as a pioneer in the usage of concrete in residential construction.
He continued his travel to other countries of Europe like Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia and Rome. He wrote all about his travels in his book Le Voyage d’Orient. Corbusier moved and finally settled in Paris for good in 1917 and began his architectural practice.
Le Corbusier started getting famous for his unconventional work influenced by steamships. He introduced steel, glass and concrete shifting a way of constructing buildings previously. One of his famous building named Villa Savoye is constructed from reinforced concrete and masonry units.
Le Corbusier’s Significant Work
Whole life of le Corbusier is full of significant work that he did with immense dedication. Le Corbusier was ahead of time. His work is still considered as the work done in this century. One of his most famous piece of design is a modern French country house.
Villa Savoye:
Villa Savoye is one of the most famous work of le Corbusier. It is located outside Paris in Poissy. It is a modern take on a French country house and is still considered as the most significant contributions to modern architecture in the 20th century.
UN Secretariat Building, New York:
There are many designed and constructed buildings of Le Corbusier that put him among the most famous architects of his time. He was among the team of architects who designed the United Nations Secretariats Building in Manhattan New York city.
The Chapel of Notre-dame-du-haut, Ronchomp:
Corbusier designed and constructed many religious places too. The chapel of Notre-dame-du-haut in Ronchomp was one of them.
The Church Of Saint Pierre, Firminy:
The Church Of Saint-Pierre in Firminy and The Convent Of Sainte Marie De La Tourette near Lyon were two of his greatest achievement till date while being an atheist himself.
National Museum of Western Arts, Japan:
Corbusier went all the way to Japan and constructed the National Museum of Western Arts, which is still termed as a masterpiece in itself.
Centre Le Corbusier, Zurich:
There is a remarkable Centre le Corbusier in Zurich which displays his larger-than-life work and personal belongings till date.
Le Corbusier was contracted by the master plan and the capital buildings for the construction of a city. They both were hired to design the city of Chandigarh. He worked on the urban planning of the city from 1951 till his death in 1965.
Father of Urban Planning
Le Corbusier revolutionised urban planning. He was the founding member of the Congress International D’architecture Moderne (CIAM). He was the first to realize how fast the automobiles will be a part of human society. He conceived the futuristic notion of architecture and started planning apartments and skyscrapers ahead of time. Le Corbusier harmonized the technology with concrete to build a space which is both urban and liveable according to the human needs and nature.
Le Corbusier died due to a heart attack at an age of 77 in 1965, after swimming at the French Riviera. There were so many projects on board at the time of his death which never saw the day of light after he departed.
The foundation Le Corbusier was a private foundation formed to honor the great architect and his work after his life. In year 2016, seventeen of le Corbusier’s buildings spanning in seven different countries were identified as UNESCO World Heritage sites, reflecting the outstanding contribution to the modernism movement.
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