While my favorite architect of all time would have to be Frank Lloyd Wright, I have a lot of respect and appreciation for the work of Le Corbusier. Although he is not nearly as well known in the United States as Wright, he is known more around the world and his works gain great respect from a plethora of people who observe his work yearly.
The buildings that he designed that made it into our textbook include Villa Savoye and Unite d’Habitation apartment block. Both of the buildings are in France, which is the reason he is less known in the US than elsewhere around the world.
Villa Savoye is a home built for the Savoye family between 1928 and 1931. This home may look a little strange and not too flashy from the outside, but I think the design is brilliant. Corbusier made this home to be fully livable and functional as a home while also making use of the roof and area underneath of the house. He raised the building up on stilts so the Savoye family could have a garden underneath of their house. The roof is functional as a garden and a terrace. He also added a row of windows all around the outside to allow for natural lighting. It is incredible what he could do for functionality of buildings while still making them look fantastic.
Here is a picture of the rooftop and of a staircase inside the building. Neither picture is a commonly seen picture, yet they both show the brilliance of Corbusier and the beauty of his work.
The Unite d’habitation apartment block is definitely not as flashy as a work of Frank Lloyd Wright, but it is a totally different type of building. It is as functional of an apartment building as I have ever heard of. Apart from having many apartments, the building also houses shops, medical and educational facilities, a restaurant, and a hotel open to the public. Corbusier ushered in a new era of architecture with his outside the box thinking which brought extreme functionality to what used to be a simple building.
And here is a picture of the rooftop on this building. Building on stilts and making really cool rooftops were a trademark of Corbusier.
I also think Le Corbusier's designs are really cool. He is not as catchy as Wright, but his houses are much more practical and efficient. I'm not a huge fan of the outside of the Villa Savoye, but having a garden under your house would be neat. Like you, I think Wright is better, but Le Corbusier is still an excellent architect.
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