SUPER GREEN - the International Academy of Design and Health

Left: A Le Corbusier muralRight: Chaise Longue Thonat-FreresBelow: Pavillon SuisseTo look at his buildings – like the Villa Savoye, the domestic ‘machine’ at itsmost elegant – is to see these ideas writ large. But, like all geniuses, he wasfl awed, his inspired rhetoric and idealism sometimes carrying him far beyondwhat might seem desirable to most mortals. The thought of having to live in the2km-long wall of high-rise dwellings he designed to run the length of the bay ofAlgiers, is truly horrifi c.And even our exhibition guide declared the citizens of Paris ‘lucky’ not to havehad his vision for a new Parisian metropolis – 1925’s Le Plan Voisin – infl ictedon them, the city’s rococo excesses stripped away in favour of a uniform vista oftower blocks and barracks-style multi-storey dwellings....his inspiredrhetoric andidealism sometimescarrying him farbeyond what mightseem desirable tomost mortalsReforming zealBut it’s worth being reminded that Le Corbusier’s fi rst completed mass housingproject, L’Unité d’habitation, was conceived as a utopian city in the sky. Theapartments were all intended to be luxurious dwellings, with fi tted kitchens,double-height lounges and private garden terraces, the community served and strengthened by generous integral gathering spaces andfacilities – a roof terrace adorned with playgrounds, creche, gymnasium; and an internal street stuffed with shops and eateries.I left the exhibition convinced that the power of his buildings lay in that heady combination of technical virtuosity, reforming zeal, and theevident poetry in his soul, nurtured and maintained through his dedication to art, travel, sculpture, and the life of the mind.In lesser hands, his ideas were quickly corrupted, seized on by individuals more seduced by the economy and speed withwhich massive housing units could be constructed. The failure of these buildings as dwellings, when cheaply built, badly sited andfi lled with the urban poor, cannot be laid at his door.As The RIBA Trust photographic footnote at the endof the exhibition reminds us, in the right hands, his ideascould inspire brilliant buildings – London’s Barbican andthe Southbank complex to name but two. It’s a timelyreminder, however, as new cities that celebrate the egosof the world’s leading architects are constructed all overthe Eastern part of the globe, that architecture is only oneelement in the mix.Intelligent social engineering and a robust, supportiveinfrastructure are what creates truly healthy environmentsand cities.Veronica Simpson is an architectural journalistThe Le Corbusier exhibition has been produced by the Vitra DesignMuseum, in co-operation with the RIBA Trust and the NetherlandsArchitecture InstituteWORLD HEALTH DESIGN | October 2008 69