Friday, 14 April 2006

Modernism: How bad was it?







Le Corbusier - Uncyclopaedia
Modernism - Special report -

TAGS: Art, Architecture, History-Twentieth_Century, Urban_Design


  1. Hi Peter,

    I beg to differ in your analysis of Corbusier. His houses pioneered a sensitivity to open, naturally lit spaces. His house sequences often involved moving from a cave-like space upwards toward an open, broadly lit space, as if one were moving towards enlightenment. And the Ronchamp chapel... I have not been there yet but it was extremely influential for Kahn... a composition of concave and convex surfaces responding to the site and creating a complex tension in the structure and the light, as if a mystery hangs in the air... while I am not fond of the sterile white-washed look, I think there is more to Corbusier than you (or that modernist critique) allows.

    PS: there are no right angles in the Ronchamp Chapel! hahaha

    Brett Holverstott

  2. Brett,

    I exclude Ronchamp from my excoriation of Corbusier. That success shows he really did know what he was doing, which might perhaps suggest that his more inhuman creations weren't accidental?

    How's your new job? :-)

  3. Hi Peter,

    The early phase of Le Corbusier's work, such as the Weissenhofsiedlung in Stuttgart, shown above in your comment, was the result of a massive integration of structure, light and space. By using concrete slabs and pilotis, you free up the walls from their load bearing function, provide vast strip windows and an essentially free plan, with large rooftop terraces open to scenic views. I think this is a huge accomplishment.

    But there is also the later phase of work, when Le Corbusier returned to ancient inspirations, creating massive forms that texture the light and exploit the plasticisty of concrete. Of course, concrete was his only option in India, but I think it worked very well, with large sun shields that simultaneously opened the space to prevailing breezes. Ronchamp is merely a stepping stone in this later phase... are you rejecting all other built works by Corbusier, all those in Chandigarh?

    I admit that he was a horrible urban planner, which, by the way, were never built. But I believe he was a great architect.



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