Antony Moulis

LE CORBUSIER'S HORIZON: Technique and the Architectural Plan

In this paper the difference between an architects idea or ‘vision’ and its production through the plan is examined in some detail, using the work of the architect Le Corbusier as exemplar. One of Le Corbusiers more persistent ideas concerned the use of architecture to frame the view to the horizon—an idea that is acknowledged as a key aspect of the architects thinking. For Le Corbusier, the experience of viewing the horizon took on a heightened subjective quality compared to other kinds of viewing and it was clearly an experience to be exploited and manipulated in architectural tenns. This paper begins with an extended discussion of Le Corbusiers concept of the horizon, as described in the architects polemical writings, before dealing with the concept of the horizon a second time—as that concept which is constructed and mediated through techniques of the plan.

Architecture in translation: Le Corbusier’s influence in Australia

While there is an abundance of commentary and criticism on Le Corbusier’s effect upon architecture and planning globally – in Europe, Northern Africa, the Americas and the Indian sub-continent – there is very little dealing with other contexts such as Australia. The paper will offer a first appraisal of Le Corbusier’s relationship with Australia, providing example of the significant international reach of his ideas to places he was never to set foot. It draws attention to Le Corbusiers contacts with architects who practiced in Australia and little known instances of his connections - his drawing of the City of Adelaide plan (1950) and his commission for art at Jorn Utzons Sydney Opera House (1958). The paper also considers the ways that Le Corbusier’s work underwent translation into Australian architecture and urbanism in the mid to late 20th century through the influence his work exerted on others, identifying further possibilities for research on the topic.

From Impact to Legacy: Interpreting Critical Writing on Le Corbusier from the 1920s to the Present

As a major figure of international modernism, Le Corbusier’s work has been subject to extensive critique and review both during his lifetime and since, to the extent that he has become the world’s most studied 20th century architect. While numerous attempts have been made to assess Le Corbusier’s works and ideas in their meaning and influence, little attention has been given to understanding the phenomena of critical writing and research that continues to surround the architect. Drawing upon research by the authors in preparing a 4-volume anthology of writings on Le Corbusier’s work for a major British publisher in 2016, the paper will trace critical reaction to the architect’s practice through a survey investigation of research and writing produced mainly in English from the 1920s to the present. The paper will give a chronological account of the issues, ideas and approaches that have emerged in critical writings on Le Corbusier and his architecture, reporting on the historiographic questions that have presented themselves in undertaking such a large-scale survey work. Reviewing the work of well-known critics the survey has also sought out lesser-known voices whose presence reflects Le Corbusier’s impact around the world, providing new interpretations through fresh perspectives on his work.

An exemplar for modernism: Le Corbusier's Adelaide drawing, urbanism and the Chandigarh plan

The paper closely examines a plan drawing of the city of Adelaide, South Australia, made by the architect Le Corbusier in 1950, shortly before he took up the commission to design the city of Chandigarh in the Indian Punjab. A series of parallels are made between the Adelaide drawing and the production of the Chandigarh master plan, which are used to re-open questions of Le Corbusiers famous design for the city and aspects of his urbanism. In doing so the paper also points to Adelaides peculiar status as an exemplar for critical modernist agendas regarding the organisation and planning of cities subscribed to by Le Corbusier and earlier city reformers like Ebenezer Howard. The paper concludes by offering a fresh assessment of the role of technique and process in Le Corbusiers urban projects including Chandigarh, which the architects Adelaide drawing can help to evidence.

History, Criticism, Judgment, Project

This paper compares statements by two influential voices in late modern architectural criticism, namely Manfredo Tafuri and Jane Jacobs. It concerns the self-appointed role of the architectural critic in light of a general assessment, made by both these figures, although on different terms and under different motivations, of an intellectual and community poverty in the later stages of architectural modernism. Through their views, the paper reflects on the limitations of critical detachment in light of the larger concerns of architectural publishing to which the critic is inevitably subject. It concludes by reflecting on the editors role in shaping the terms of engagement to which the architectural critic subscribes.

An Active Silence: Le Corbusier's Art in Australia

In 1953 a major exhibition of European contemporary artworks organised by the Art Gallery of NSW toured the State Galleries of Australia. Entitled ‘French Painting Today’, the exhibition featured works by prominent artists including Braque, Derain, Leger, Matisse, and Picasso seen in Australia for the first time. Amongst the works were three paintings by Le Corbusier, Le Femme au livre (1935), Les deux soeurs (1933-1947), and Deux mains et pomme d’or (1948). By examining documents concerning the staging of ‘French Painting Today’ as well as critical and popular accounts of the exhibition and its tour of Australia, the paper reveals the little known history of Le Corbusier’s paintings within the exhibition event and puts in context their mixed reception in local art and architecture circles. The reception of Le Corbusier’s art in Australia in 1953 opens discrete yet interesting possibilities for the discussion of the architect’s art and its interplay with his architectural production. Architectural criticism often plays down discussion of the quality of Le Corbusier’s art, justifying it as part of a broader synthetic act - one that is seamless with, and deferential to, his architectural production. Yet the frank reception of Le Corbusier’s art in the context of ‘French Painting Today’ points to inherent tensions in such broad-based critical assessments of his art and architectural practice.