Pratt institute
CEP/Sang Kim
Le Corbusier:
Unite d’habitation
_The Grand Modern Architect and One of His Masterpiece
Kerin Lee (Younglee, Lee)
Introduction; Le Corbusier and his work
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, our city and structure of housing has changed the most through its industrialization. In this period Le Corbusier proposed the new idea of The Communal living and group housing in the areas of architecture and city planning. Le Corbusier (1887-1965) is the one of the most famous architects in the modern age and is still influential. He also proposed many important theories including the ‘Five Principles in The Modern Architecture’ and also the ‘Theory of The Modern City’. The important idea of The Communal living is belonging to the theory of modern city. From this viewpoint, Le Corbusier and his work have had the most important impact on modern architecture. The Unite d’habitation, like most of his all architecture has implicated the housing concept of communal living. It has many important historical meanings in modern architecture due to its most remarkable area in communal living. In addition this building has greatly influenced today’s apartment style. Unite d’habitation can be classified into three architectural aspects which are historical, functional and structural.
Le Corbusier is one of the most famous architect celebrities in the world and has his portrait on The Swiss ten Frances banknote. His ideas such as the ‘Five Point of Modern Architecture’, the ‘Modular Theory’, the ‘Four Point of Housing’ and etc. are still reflected nowadays in modern architecture. The Unite d’habitation (see Figure 1.) especially has very important meaning in historical architecture. The Unite d’habitation brings together Le Corbusier’s vision for the Communal living with the needs and realities of post war France (Simon, 2001). Following his modular theory; modular generates the fifteen units controlling dimensions in the vertical and horizontal planes giving the block great formal clarity (David, 1993, p14). He used this modular as a design tool. It was influenced by a ‘civilization’ that was the new reality of mass production. At that time structure of apartment advanced to our housing style. This building looks like stacked boxes similar to today’s apartment.
2. Functional aspect of Unite d’habitation; Communal living housing.
After the World War II, in the late 1960s and early 1970s the circumstances were ripped to the development of alternative life style (Rachel, 1998). Le Corbusier stood as the forefront of this changing. According to changing of people’ lifestyle and rapidly increased the number of people, he designed new style of housing that was different from its previous ones. That idea comes from the Communal living theory and especially the building is Unite d’habitation. It contains almost 340 apartments for some 1600 people for urban living (Peter, 1960, p120). Most of all, the roof garden distinguished features unlike existing buildings. The roof garden has a huge plaza for children to play; a pool, a restaurant, concrete benched for their parents (Peter, 1960, p123). This example gives structure to the existing community of habitation. More over his other important ideas in Unite d’habitation is protecting and making independent habitation’s privacy from the every crowdedness. That is approaching the idea of segregation of groups or mass. To some necessities to whom they do not want to induce the troubles between individual and community (Andre, 2006).
3. Structural aspect of Unite d’habitation; The Dom-ino theory.
Beginning in the late 1920s and extending to the present day, there are many architectural theories different from in past’s buildings (Edward, 1996). The Dom-ino theory is the most important theory in modern architecture. It belongs in the Five Point of Modern Architecture that Le Corbusier made. The Dom-ino (See Figure 2.) is a simple statement about the possibilities of reinforced-concrete construction: a frame of six columns, supporting all floors and roof slabs, with cantilevered stair that connects from ground to roof (Peter, 1964, p44). This theory was the general theory that changed the way of thinking of western architecture over thousands years (Lim, 2000). Therefore Le Corbusier’s invention that influenced the Dom-ino theory was the turning point of Modern architecture. Not only the historical meaning but also it influenced Unite d’habitation and even apartment structure. This structure can easily make vertical walls flexibly and separate living units. As a result, his spatial idea provided each of the ‘superimposed houses’ so-called tower apartment unit (Peter, 1964, p45).
Fig.2 Column-and-slab structure for Dom-ino houses,1914 (Peter, 1964, P43)
Conclusion; The important architectural meaning about Unite d’habitaion.
Le Corbusier proposed many theories of modern architecture and still influenced today’s architecture. Unite d’habitation has many meanings of historical, functional and structural aspect of modern architecture. Unite d’habitation brings the new housing idea for the Communal living. It reflects the time’s circumstance such as industrialization and civilization as a housing style form. This functional housing style was so called the Communal living. The Communal living was the most essential idea of the Unite d’habitation that exited for community of habitation. Not only community but also habitation’s privacy is the distinguished point of the Unite d’habitation. Lastly structural was another emphasizes to Le Corbusier. Le Corbusier invented the Dom-ino theory that is different from the past’s architectures. Using multiple columns with vertical and horizontal walls and slabs creates flexible spaces easily. The ‘Superimposed houses’ provided the spatial idea of apartment units. The Unite d’habitation also followed the Dom-ino theory. With its reasoning of the Unite d’habitation is to be considered the most important modern architecture. Moreover Le Corbusier is still greatest influence in our modern architecture today.
References
* Unite d’habitation, Marseilles_ Le Corbusier (1993), David Jenkins, Phaidon Press Ltd.
* Le Corbusier_ Architecture and Form (1964), Peter Blake, a Pelican Book.
* Le Corbusier’s hand (2006), Andre Wogenscky, The MIT Press
* The Details of Modern Architecture (1996), Edward R. Ford, The MIT press.
* Le Corbusier and the Radiant City Contra ; True Urbanity and the Earth (1998), Rachel Kennedy, http://www.uky.edu/.
* Unite d’habitation (Cite Radiease), Marseilles (2001), Simmon Glynn, http://www.galinsky.com/.
* Le Corbusier, his success and failure (2000), Lim Woojin, The architecture theory http://www.preso.orange.fr/.
Picture
* fig. 1) http://www.thepoolve.com/ (2000)
* fig. 2) Le Corbusier_ Architecture and Form (1964), Peter Blake, a Pelican Book
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