Le Corbusier: striving for modern design on a grand scale

In this School of Life video, we consider the contribution to architecture of Le Corbusier, as well as his mixed legacy, and what we might learn from it for the future.

Le Corbusier was a French-Swiss architect, designer, and painter who, along with Frank Lloyd Wright, Walter Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe, is considered one of the most influential architects of the 20th century.

Credited with pioneering Modernist architecture, Le Corbusier popularised open-floor style edifices, the extensive use of concrete in urban buildings, as well as several chair and sofa designs.

Born Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (1887-1965) in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, he studied visual art and, as a painter, was initially drawn to Cubism before rejecting it to co-found the Purism movement.

His career spanned five decades, and he designed buildings in Europe, Japan, India, and North and South America.

Dedicated to providing better living conditions for the residents of crowded cities, Le Corbusier was influential in urban planning, and was a founding member of the Congrès International d’Architecture Moderne (CIAM).

Among his many accomplishments, Le Corbusier prepared the master plan for the Indian city of Chandigarh, and contributed specific designs for several buildings there, especially the government buildings.

In 2016, 17 projects by Le Corbusier in seven countries were inscribed in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites as ‘The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement’.

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View the original video here.

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