Curtis, William J. R.

(2018)
Ideas of Structure and the Structure of Ideas: Le Corbusier's Pavillon Suisse, 1930-1931
Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 40, No. 4 (Dec., 1981), pp. 295-310

Ideas of Structureand the Structureof Ideas:

Le Corbusier's Pavilion Suisse, 19 30-19 3 1
WILLIAM J. R. CURTIS Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Harvard University

Styles,like languages,differin the sequenceof articulationand in the

numberof questionstheyallowthe artistto ask....
E. H. Gombrich1

Le Corbusierwas obsessed with creating the prototypes of a new stands some pages after the Villa Savoye and a little way before
era of harmony for the industrialcity. His solutions to individual the urban schemes of the early thirties, as yet another statement
commissions were often laden with urbanistic principles which of mature principle. As usual the black and white photograph is
he sometimes demonstrated at the expense of a more immediate employed as a rhetoricalaid to give a highly select set of vignettes.
practicality. By digging into the design process of Pavillon Suisse, Nearby buildings are left out of the account, the greenery of the
we may sense how Le Corbusier translated the given program site is accentuated, and a soft sunlight, more related to Mediter-
and site into the terminology of his own dream, how he coped ranean mythology than to Parisian reality, bathes the forms.
with compromises and attacks on his ideal intentions, and how Evidently this is the way the architect himself wanted his creation
he adjusted and extended an architectural language that was to be seen. He presents us with a finely proportioned steel and
already mature. In particularwe are better able to gauge the way glass box poised on robust concrete pilotis, facing south over a
standard elements, such as the pilotis, were "re-thought" to field destined to become an athletics ground. Student rooms are
embody new levels of meaning. freshly cleaned and conjure up that combined atmosphere of
liner cabin and monastic cell the architect so admired. Carefully
H ISTORIANS have customarily treated Le Corbusier's Pavil- composed groups of young men in shirt sleeves are strategically
ion Suisse of 1930-193I as a transitional building standing placed so that they may casually demonstrate the role of the
between the "Purist"tendencies of the twenties and the "Primi- pilotis as liberatorsof terrainand circulation.These photographs
tivist" characteristicsof the thirties. This essay will be concerned give us glimpses into an ideal world of healthy bodies and
less with defining phases in Le Corbusier's oeuvre than with healthy minds, in which mechanization and nature run along in
unravelling the intentions behind a single work. Broadly speak- harmony, and those "essential joys" of space, light, and greenery
ing the aim is to explain why these particular forms were em- are available to all.
ployed in this situation. To answer such a question even approxi- The picture is filled out and modified if one visits the site today.
mately one must reconstruct the process of design. In the case of Pavillon Suisse is not an isolated building, but a terminating
the Pavillon Suisse the evidence for the design process is consid- incident in a larger whole-that international park which is the
erable and includes drawings, letters, notes, and reminiscences.2 Cite Universitaire (Figs. 3, 4). It stands alongside a number of
unfortunate essays in "national" imagery from the twenties. The
Description and architecturalpromenade
approach is liable to be along a tree-lined drive with a turning
Pavilion Suisse is well known to many who never have been to circle at the end of it. The lower curved rubble wall echoes the
Paris through the remarkable drawings and photographs of Le shape of this roadway, roots the building to the ground, and
Corbusier's Oeuvre complete, Volume z (Figs. I, z).3 Here it contains the main communal function, now a lounge (originally
a dining hall); the quarters of the concierge also stand at ground
floor level. These lower elements are surmounted by another
curved shape, a sort of flange, containing stairs and lavatories
I. Ernst H. Gombrich, Art and Illusion, London, 1977, 78. and coated at one end in glass brick. This abuts the main box
z. Thebulkof thedocumentary andgraphicevidenceis at theFonda-
tion LeCorbusierin Paris.I amgratefulto theFondation(henceforthin containing the access corridorsto the students' rooms, the domi-
thesenotes referredto as "FLC")for theirpermissionto publish.I am nant element of the design. It stands in tense relationship to the
also gratefulto the ClarkFundof HarvardUniversitywhichgaveme a
smallgrantwhichcoveredthecostsof producingthisarticle. curves, a rigorous and silent critic of the numerous pastiches of
3. Le Corbusier et Pierre Jeanneret, Oeuvre compl&te 1929-1934, the same arrangementsince put up worldwide. Steel framed, the
Zurich, 1935, 74-89; also referredto as "Oeuvre complete, Volume z." box is wrapped in a stone veneer: only the south side is fully

295

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296 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

Maismam

II

Fig. I. LeCorbusier,Pavilion
Suisse, Paris, 1930-3 1, view of the
southfacadeovera fielddestinedto
becomean athleticsground.
(Oeuvre complkte 1929-34, 87.
Courtesyof FondationLe
CorbusierandLesEditions
d'Architecture,
Artemis,Zurich)

opened up as the method of construction allows, providing the Pavilion Suisse as a transitionalbuilding
student rooms with a good view and more than ample illumi-
Along the route from public path to private room one is con-
nation.
fronted by various firm reminders of Le Corbusier's much-dis-
The approach as one leaves the driveis a carefullyorchestrated
cussed changes of emphasis in style since the Puristphase of the
"promenade" of a kind familiar from the villas of the twenties. twenties. The white cylinders of earlier pilotis have here given
One is guided graduallypast the glazing to one end of the lounge
way (under the main box) to squat creatures of bare concrete,
and towards views of the landscape cut out between the pilotis.
complex curvature,and anthropomorphiccharacter.5The hori-
One ascends shallow steps to a slightly raised podium on which
zontal strip windows and bands of white stucco of the canonical
the main box sits. It is a place with a dignified air which is
villas have been replaced by fully glazed "glass walls" (pans de
enhanced by the sober characterof the concrete supports, broad
verre). A stern restriction on the range of textures and materials
but never dumpy, receding in perspective. They form a sort of
used has yielded to an obvious enjoyment of the contrasting
portico towards the center point of the box. To enter the build-
qualities of steel and stone facing, of rubble and glass brick, of
ing one has to circle back through the structure and thread be-
planar glass areas and surfacesof varyingconcrete aggregate.
neath the superstructureon a diagonal path. One then penetrates
The usual roster of "explanations" for such changes in style is
the hall and glimpses a series of transparentplanes which allow a
well enough known. We hear that human bodies impinged more
clear inspection of the options for movement. The stairs, off to
on Le Corbusier's consciousness in his middle years than they
the left, are most inviting, and draw one up into the flange seen in
had hitherto, or that parallelpiped bottles and machine parts lost
the firstviews, prior to feeding one onto the various landings and
something of their hold over his imagination. We gather that his
corridors. Throughout this sequence one recalls Le Corbusier's
capitalist sympathies softened up and that "Syndicalism"
dictum that "... architecturecan be judged as dead or living by
seemed more soothing; and somehow or another this switch in
the degree to which the rule of movement has been disregarded
"ideology" is supposed to have led to a greater love of "organi-
or brilliantlyexploited."4 The dynamic play of the main volumes
cism," or curvaceous "natural" forms. Or it is occasionally
seems to illustrate the differencebetween functions, but also the
path that it is intended one should follow.
5. Of course,cylindricalpilotiswere not the only sort that Le Cor-
busier employed in the twenties; for example, in the Centrosoyusscheme,
4. Le Corbusier, Talks with Students, New York, 1961, 46. ca. 1929, pilotisof an ovalplanformwereused.

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 297

2I12129 FACADE
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Fig. z. LeCorbusier,Pavillon
Suisse,elevationdrawingandtwo
views of pilotis.(Oeuvrecomplte
1929-34, 8z. Courtesy of Fonda-
tion LeCorbusierandLesEditions
Artemis,Zurich)
d'Architecture,

I
JV?Ac . omaill.4 ax~m
-,je,J-0L, "IemO. Itspi[otis
)Us

stated that his attitude to concrete became more "honest" or to Why was it here that this particularform tendency chose to come
Cubism more "subtle."6 so clearly into the open?
Of course this is to caricature a variety of explanations of But if there were changes at Pavillon Suisse there were also,
artistic change which probably have worthy elements within most definitely, continuities with earlier works. The grammar
them.' The point in general is to remainsuspicious of any kind of was still firmly based on the principles of "the Five Points of a
oversimplified statement about cause and effect. The internal New Architecture"(pilotis, free plan, free faCade,strip window,
chemistry of Le Corbusier's style was anything but simple. It is roof terrace), even if the accentuation was altogether different
not sufficientjust to credit such an artist with a vague new form from the earlierworks. The well-worn theme of the box on stilts
volition or else to take another extreme and expect major was clearly in evidence and the plan shapes offer numerous pos-
changes in morphology automatically to reflect major shifts in sible finds for those whose hobby it is to compare the outlines of
belief. Similarlyone has to be wary of the sort of argumentwhich bathrooms with those of painted guitars. Pavillon Suisse, more-
emphasizes an interest, on the part of the creator, in new over, was surely another fragmentof Le Corbusier'sideal social
"sources." It is very probable that the "organic" profiles of the dreams, a suggestion of the direction society might take. In it, he
pilotis at Pavillon Suisse do reflect a fascination, on some level, extended his generic themes and his earliervocabulary, blending
with the structure of bones or shells or some other natural "ob- and adapting them with new discoveries appropriate (in his
jects with a poetic character" (objets a' reaction poetique) but mind) to the new situation. This is where an examination of the
such things had preoccupied the artist for a number of years. design process proves specially valuable, for it reveals a style at
work. By scrutinizingthe evidence of drawings one may begin to
grasp a hierarchyof differentintentions in a most rich and com-
plex work of architecture.
6. Sincethe authorhimselfhas indulgedin most of these folkloric
observations about Le Corbusier's changes in style ca. 1929-193z, he The client's intentions and the site
will not attemptto tracethemto anyparticularinvidioussource.
7. Fortwo subtletreatmentsof changein LeCorbusier'sformalatti- Before the architect was involved there was a program, and
tudes see: PeterSerenyi,"Le Corbusier'sChangingAttitudeToward before a program, a social purpose which stemmed in this case
Form," JSAH, xxiv, March 1965, 15; and Eduard Sekler, "The Car- from membersof the Swiss elite living in Paris.The Cite Universi-
penterCenterin Le Corbusier'sOeuvre:An Assessment,"E. F. Sekler
and W. Curtis,Le Corbusierat Work:the Genesisof the Carpenter taire itself embodied a numberof loosely framed ideals. From its
Centerfor the VisualArts, Cambridge, MA, 1978, 229. foundation in 19I2 the practical intention of providing decent

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298 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

aj~i:-~ :a

:it
:
Fig. 3. LeCorbusier,Pavilion
Suisse,perspectiveviewedfromthe
~a' n.-.,. approachdriveway.(Oeuvre
?'.?;'?s:?
-,3 3-,
r?r, :::~ (:-: ?- complete 1929-34, 75. Courtesy of
;3 ~r~
~,
FondationLe CorbusierandLes
Editionsd'Architecture,
Artemis,
Zurich)

...,.~....~~1.1.~..~..-~....
..------.II~.-.-?~~-II-~---------------- --^_.__~i
do
prolet
Pavilio

living places for foreign students in Parishad been enhanced by a The committee was glad to play its part in such a scenario. It
certain beneficent internationalism, as if the intermingling of emphasized the stimulating role of Paris as a cultural center and
future intellectual leaders could be relied upon to decrease the the importance of friendships for young Swiss, as these might
likelihood of the kind of strife which had recently torn Europe. later bloom into idealistic and commercial alliances. The even-
Each nation was to have its own house in a sort of miniature and tual building should provide a suitable setting for these noble
studious version of the League of Nations; its young visitors to aims and do "honor to our country."10
Paris would thus be freed from the disadvantages of garret ac- TheSwisscolonyin Francehasalwaysdemonstrated itsattachment to
commodation. The "Cite" was to be supplied with sports fields the Mother Countryby its acts, and will certainlynot withholdits
and parks, yet was to have easy and swift access by rail to the supportfrom bringingto fruitiona work destinedto rendersuch an
main centers of the Sorbonne. Something of this enlightened outstandingserviceto ourcountry,namely,theformationof theintellec-
tualeliteof the future."
spirit can be traced in a report written in December 1929 by the
"Comite de la Colonie Suisse de Paris pour la Fondation d'une Such an aim was liable to appeal to the man the committee was
Maison a la Cite Universitaire."s Describing the "Cite" as a soon to choose, without competition, as their architect. It was in
whole the report stated: June 1930 that Le Corbusier was first approached by Monsieur
Thisinstitutionis put forwardto providestudentswith a foyer,where, R. Fueter,a professor of mathematicsfromZurich and the acting
for a reasonablefee, theymayfinda moral,safeandreassuringatmos- president of "le Curatorium de la Maison Suisse dans la Cite
phere,an agreeableplaceto stay,andgood food, all in the best condi- Universitaire de Paris."'12It seems that, behind the scenes, Le
tionsof hygieneandwell being.The Citealreadyincludesa numberof Corbusier had been strongly backed for the job by Karl Moser,
residencesset aboutwithgardensandall sortsof otherfacilities,suchas
architect, and Sigfried Giedion, historian; however, as Moser
lecturehalls,playingfields,etc.... Itis reallya sortof littlecosmopolitan
implied in a brief note to Le Corbusier,there were other "fervent
citywhichis comingintoexistencebehindtheMontsourrispark.9
orators" in his favor, including an earlier Corbusian client,
Raoul La Roche, banker and collector of paintings.'3 La Roche
8. Dated5 December1929. Thiswas evidentlya circularto drumup had been extremely pleased with the house designed for him by
support.The membershipcommitteewas drawnfromthe intellectual
andcommercialuppercrustof the Swisscommunityin Paris;the Presi-
dentwas M. Sennhauser. (Document,FLC.)
9. Seenote 8: "Cetteinstitutionse proposede procureraux &tudiants io. See note 8.
un foyeroii, pourun prix modique,ils puissenttrouverdansles meil- i 1. Seenote8: "LaColonieSuisseen France,quia toujoursmanifest6
leures conditionsde bien-etreet d'hygiene,une atmospheremorale pardes actesson attachement Ala MWre Patrie,ne refuserapas son aide
sauveet reconfortante, un logementagreable,et une bonnenourriture. pourparfaireuneoeuvredestineeAnotrepays,en contribuant Aformer
Lacite comprenddejanombrede maisonsspacieuses,entour&es de jar- l'l1iteintellectuellede l'avenir."Laterin the samestatementtherewNas
dins,ainsiquedesinstallationsde tousgenres,dessallesde lectures,des referenceto "lecentrede cultureincomparable querepresenteParis."
terrainsde jeuetc.... c'esttouteunepetitevillecosmopolitequi s'1elve 12. Letter R. Fueterto Le Corbusier, Ix June 1930 (FLC).
derrierele ParcMontsourris."All translationsby authorunlessother- 13. Card K. Moser to Le Corbusier, 18 June 1930 (FLC). Moser
wise noted. stated:"Jesuisheureuxpourla jeunessesuisseet pourvous."

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931
2_99
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LLO, , .4,PAki , ...

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esk con.stidrab sr o~ )ts aatres proc
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Fig. 4. Le Corbusier, Pavilion Suisse, plan of ground level. North is to the top of the drawing. (Oeuvre complete 1929-34, 79. Courtesy of Fondation
Le CorbusierandLesEditionsd'Architecture,
Artemis,Zurich)

Le Corbusier in Auteuil in 1923 and had given a large sum in the directorand rooms for the servants.Bathsand showerson each
floor. 15
support of the Pavilion Suisse project. M. Fueter's letter spoke
enthusiastically of the "authority" that Le Corbusier's reputa- In the same letter reference was made to the site and Le Cor-
tion would bring to the project;14perhaps he and his fellow busier was referredto "M. le Ministre Dunant" for further de-
committee members were aware of the architect's battered feel- tails. Apparently, there were a few extant building plots in the
ings after the League of Nations fiasco in Geneva. In any case, Le "Cit6" and it is not altogether clear how the eventual one was
Corbusier accepted. Evidently the Swiss clique in charge of the chosen. This stood to the southeast extremity and was bordered
commission thought of Le Corbusier as "their man," a fellow by the rue Benoist Malon to the east, a sliproad running in front
Swiss, despite the fact that he was now a legalized Frenchman of the playing fields to the south, the small Swedish foundation to
who regardedhimself as an international prophet. the west, and a driveway (also running past the Danish and
The letter of invitation also outlined the bare bones of the Japanese residences) to the north. Thus Le Corbusier's site was
architectural program, but without making any strong sugges- an oblong with its long axis running approximately east-west. It
tions concerning dimensions or the interrelationship of spaces. immediately implied a certain ambiguity about "front" and
The residenceshouldcontain:An entry,a hallfor breakfast,also to act
as a lectureroom. 41 studentrooms (for size and furnishing,see for 15. See note i2: "La maison devrait avoir: Une entree, un hall, pour
prrfiier[sic]dejeuner,et commesallede lecture.42 Chambresd'6tudi-
example,theJapanesepavilion).Roomsfor the concierge.z roomsfor ants (commegrandeur,ameublement,voire p.e. maison japonaise),
Chambrespourle concierge,z chambrespourla directriceet les cham-
bresnecessairespour les servantes.Bainset douchessur chacque[sic]
14. See note I2. etage."

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300 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

2556
CU
P h 8
1, A 1) F, A T I N
NX !T I1 oI
,
.•
E"
xSWO
-IORCW

lk
/
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A-rHL~nZtA

Fig. 5. Le Corbusier and Atelier, Pavilion Suisse, project of January 1931, "Plans de Situation." The orthogonal character of the Cite
Universitaire shows clearly in the left hand drawing; the diagonal and terminal nature of the Pavillon Suisse site shows in the drawing to the
right. Note tennis courts to the south. (Drawing CU z556, FLC number: 15300. Courtesy of Fondation Le Corbusier and Garland
Publishing, Inc.)

"back" for, while many could be expected to approach along the The scheme in question is known through a series of carefully
north driveway on a diagonal, the entire thrust of the site was ruled measured plans, elevations, and perspectives now at the
outwards, to the south, towards the intended playing fields and Fondation Le Corbusier. These were mailed to M. Fueter on 14
(in Le Corbusier's mind, no doubt) towards the health-giving January 193 I, in time for a major review by the Curatorium.The
rays of the sun. Moreover, the chosen plot had another feature: it salient features of the intended building show clearly in a site
stood over some disused quarries, thus necessitating ingenious plan a perspective under the pilotis, and a rear perspective done
foundation solutions which were liable to have their repercus- in preparation for the submission (Figs. 5, 6, 7). The student
sions in the design. rooms were put on the south side of an oblong box parallelto the
playing field border of the site. The remaining functions, includ-
Le Corbusier'sinitial project
ing the concierge's quarters and a gymnasium (which had not
Unfortunately there is no extant graphic evidence concerning been called for), were placed in a sort of box punctured by a
the architect's earliest ruminations on these givens. There is evi- terrace. This ancillary volume abutted the main one half-way
dence that by zI October 1930 a guiding idea was in existence as along its length. However, Le Corbusier had apparently seen fit
on that date Le Corbusier wrote excitedly that the project was to place all functions, public and private, above the ground, since
"clearlyestablished" (difinitivement... conqu).16It appears that the entire scheme was raised up on slender steel supports. The
a preliminaryscheme was furtherstudied in the atelier at 35, rue visual effect was somewhat precarious, especially under the box
de Sevres in November and December, and that a more thor- containing the student rooms where there were only four stan-
oughly worked out version was then submitted to the client for chions. The contrast with the earthbound neighbors was dra-
review in mid-Januaryof 193I.17 Thus one has to work back- matic as here the ground level was almost entirely free of ob-
wards, as it were, from this proposal and try to reconstruct the struction. However, an entrance and some way of getting up
guiding ideas behind it. were both needed, so a door and a stair were inserted into a
curved, fully glazed area protruding beneath the main boxes.
i6. Note Le Corbusier to R. Fueter, I9 October 1930 (FLC). There It seems worthwhile to consider why Le Corbusier adopted
are a number of tiny sketches in the correspondence files of the Pavillon
Suisse at the FLC experimenting with a quasi-courtyard scheme, and such an approach. Clearly he was intrigued by the relationship
another with rooms on each side of a slab. But there is no evidence and distinction between the public and private worlds of the
whatever that these are by Le Corbusier or, even, when they were done. inhabitants. Apparently he wished to maximize the light and
17. Evidently the Curatorium had hoped to see something by Decem-
ber: see "Rapport sur la construction du Pavillon Suisse a La Cite Uni-
views of the student rooms. Evidently he wished to handle the
versitaire," from late 1931 (FLC). tricky substructureproblems by localizing all the weight on four

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 301

j,1J.

-'i ~??
'"??,
J
I-?
'~3 ?;
1
i /-/ /~.?
if
i ?i i.
.n?i ;;
!r
`11-

Ti '" i
Br
i 1
t
j"...1,
c
~- p ,n~-
--
Fig. 6. Le CorbusierandAtelier, B\'
~2?~-gl_
Z
-?
--??-;----
: '" f,
~E*r?
PavilionSuisse,perspectiveunder (jj?
.f;J~?~f~ ,?' `*???::.~ '' ;1'4(3~hlfJI1
ill .I
pilotis, January 1931. (CU 2561, l..?C.?
t
FLC number: 15304. Courtesy of :I ?,;?
r .?"?
?.
--?
'" ?:*E~a~~

FondationLeCorbusierand p=
"f ii
` ''Lt;
i/
GarlandPublishing,Inc.)

A
nu a

Fig. 7. LeCorbusierandAtelier,
O D [] PavillonSuisse,perspectivestudy
. . . examiningrelationshipof ancillary
communalbox to mainslabcon-
tainingstudentrooms,January
1931 (?) (FLC number: I5453).
Note studiesfor structuralsup-
ports,includinga concrete"mush-
room"columnat bottom.
(Courtesyof FondationLe
CorbusierandGarlandPublishing,
Inc.)
a .1 48
..1 5 3

pointsupports.18LeCorbusiermayalsohavewantedto turnthe poetic interpretations. This is where it is intriguing to speculate

inherentambiguitiesof the site to his own advantageby lifting on the debts of the scheme to earliersolutions and themes. One is
the buildingup so thatit wouldprovidebotha semi-transparent not, of course, suggesting that Le Corbusierconstructed his ideas
screenat groundlevel and a terminatingedge to the "Cit&" by just sticking together the bits and pieces of earlier solutions.
higherup. At the same time one is not claiming that the order of a new
If thesewereaspectsof LeCorbusier'srationaletheyhad still solution was traceable entirelyto novel conditions or to singular
to be translatedinto formsandmergedwith morenebulousand creative sparks. The truth about invention surely lies between,
with old type forms being stretched and agitated into new com-
i8. Thelengthof the foundationpilingsof the
finalbuilding(over6o
cav- binations on the one hand, and unprecedented conditions being
feet)pointsto someof the problemspresentedby the substructure
erns. See Oeuvre complete 1929-1934, P. 89. gradually reorganized in terms of a preexisting language on the

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302. JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

other. 19Perhapsone may picture a phase of incubation, in which ceptually to blend with a fully glazed fagade. For structural rea-
a gradual synthesis occurred between type forms and new inten- sons Le Corbusier chose to employ a steel frame to manifest his
tions. Such a synthesis might be judged "successful" when it idea, and it may be that he thought such a fagade treatment more
could withstand the scrutiny of both external demands and the honest and evocative. Or, again, he may have found the new
artist's own intuitive sense of "rightness." system more satisfying in harmonizing whole and part at a large
Thus it serves only a limited purpose to recount some of the scale. One guesses that PierreChareau's recent Maison de Verre
obvious influences on the Pavilion Suisse project of January may have influenced him, and that the fully glazed fagade of that
193 I. One recognizes first of all the generic theme of the box on "cousin" of the Pavillon Suisse, the Maison de Refuge, may have
stilts, a leitmotif which transcended differencesof building func- also been on his mind; the latter was in construction at the same
tion in Le Corbusier'searlierrepertoire.20The interest in proces- time that the Pavillon was being designed.
sional circulation, the liberation of views beneath a structure, The pilotis also marked a departure from the customary con-
and the use of a curved, glazed undercroftwere all features remi- crete cylinders that Le Corbusier employed in the twenties.25
niscent of the then recently completed Villa Savoye.21 Oblong Was this a matter of "structuralhonesty" requiringsome exhibi-
"collective" slabs had of course been employed for work func- tion of the steel superstructure?Was there an interest in explor-
tions in the League of Nations' Secretariat, 1927, and were also ing mass production techniques? Were these steel "I" beams
being envisaged for the more recent, almost contemporary, "set- employed because they suggested a directionality from one side
back" (ei redent) housing schemes of the Ville Radieuse.22 In- of the site to another? Was this type of support employed be-
deed, one is not surprisedto gather that Le Corbusiertreated the cause it did at least provide minimal grooves for the placement of
problem of student accommodation as a subspecies of commu- ducts and pipes? Or was this solution used because it engendered
nal housing, and in the placement of the two boxes, one senses a feeling of mechanistic precision?Whatever the combination of
the possible influence of Soviet housing prototypes of the late practical and metaphorical intentions, the effect of details like
twenties such as the student housing by K. Nikolayev for Mos- this, and of the taut machine age boxes above, was much closer
cow of I928.23 The definition of an ideal collective order was a in spirit to the "Purist" phase than to the later "Organicism."
dominating obsession of Le Corbusier's (as has been pointed out There was no sign at all of the elephantine concrete pilotis or the
a number of times);24later I shall attempt to show how he co- free form curves in rubble of the final building.
opted the Pavillon Suisse program in order to transcend it with Pilotis under attack
his own ideological attitudes to this basic issue of the modern
industrial city. On 18 January 1931 M. Fueter wrote back to Le Corbusier
The scheme of January 193 1 is also interesting for what it tells expressing KarlMoser's and his own reactions to the drawings.
of Le Corbusier's need to adjust certain of his type forms in new I have just studiedyour projectwith ProfessorMoser,and we are
circumstances.After all this was not a villa but a collective dwell- equallyenthusedoverthe genialand classicmannerin whichyou have
resolvedtheproblem.Thesimplicityof theideasandtheharmonyof the
ing of some size, a situation which requiredmodification of some
of the "Five Points of a New Architecture."The strip windows spaces,aboveall the unityof theconception,demonstrateyourmastery
in a strikingfashion.I shallbe veryhappyto showyourprojectas soon
for example, were not now treated as dark tiers laid into white as possibleto thecommittee,andI don'tdoubtthateveryonewill share
stucco horizontals, but as elements which had formally and con- myadmiration.26
Nonetheless, there were practical issues which arose from this
19. It seemsimportantto assertthis at a timewhen "typology"is so initial inspection, such as the suggestion that the gymnastics
frequentlyinvokedas a clueto theformationof vocabulary.Thepresent
articlewas certainlynot writtenas an intentionalcritiqueof over-facile room might not be needed and the implication that the scheme
definitionsof typologyin LeCorbusier's work,butit mightbe readthat seemed to overrun the budget. These criticismswere amplified by
way. the observations of the curatorium. To sum up: the client was
zo. S. von Moos, Le Corbusier: Elemente einer Synthese, Frauenfeld
and Stuttgart, 1968, Io5. worried by the placement of the most public areas and the con-
z2. The role and meaningof the pilotis in the Villa Savoyeare dis-
cussedby the authorin "TheFormationof LeCorbusier's Architectural z5. Seenote 5 above.LeCorbusierusedsteelpilotisof slenderprofile
LanguageandItsCrystallization in theVillaSavoyeat Poissy,"Le Cor- for dramaticeffectin the largerof his two designsat the Weissenhof-
busier/English Architecture 193os, Units 17 and i8, Milton Keynes, siedlung, Stuttgart, 1927.
1975, 33-44. z6. Letter R. Fueter to Le Corbusier, i8 January 1931 (FLC): "Je
zz. Thispointis developedslightlybytheauthorin:"L'Universite, La viensd'6tudiervotreprojetavecM. le professeurMoser,et noussommes
Villeet L'HabitatCollectif:Encorede reflectionssurunthemede l'archi- egalemententhousiasmisde la manieregenialeet classiquede resoudre
tecture moderne," Archithese 14, June 1975. le problkme.La simplicitedes id&eset l'harmoniedes espaces,surtout
23. S. von Moos, "Wohnkollektiv, Hospiz und Dampfer," Archithbse l'unitede la conceptionprouvevotremaitriseadmirabled'unemaniere
12, December 1974. &clatante.Jeseraitresheureuxde montrervotreprojetsi t6t quepossible
24. Most notably by Peter Serenyi, "Le Corbusier, Fourier and the au et ne doute pas que toulemonde[sic]partageramon ad-
comitY, je
miration."
Monastery of Ema," Art Bulletin XLIX,1967, z77-286.

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 303

cierge's zone above the ground level and suggested that the li- Zurich was consulted. He too was shocked by the structural
brary/lecture hall space be combined with the refectory as a sort concept.33 He drew attention to the problem of instability from
of large reception room. The student rooms, and their disposi- windloads and to the difficultyof providing foundations for the
tion in the slab, were approved meanwhile. In other words, Le supports under the ancillary box given that they were off line
Corbusier was being asked to reconsider the ancillary box alto- with the main structure. He too rejected Le Corbusier's vague
gether; the hints were more than slight that he place concierge rationalizations. His remarkswere very much to the point:
and communal areas at ground level.27 I simplycannot understandthe architect'smotivesin bringingthe
But that was not all: the curatorium admitted that the idea of weightof thebuildingdownto thegroundon onlyfoursupports.Sucha
lifting the building up on pilotis was "veryoriginal" but doubted solutionprovidesno advantageswhatsoeverin handlinga trickysite.
the practical value of such a solution.28M. Jungo, the Director of Aboutall it succeedsin liftingup is thecostof theconstruction,andthat
Federal Construction, implied that he did not accept Le Cor- considerably.Moreover,a buildingcarriedout accordingto the sug-
gestedplandoesnotoffermuchstabilityandis liableto be so sensitiveto
busier's rationalizations about limiting the number of founda- lateralthruststhat one will definitelyfeel vibrations. . producedby
tion pilings, and pointed out that the neighboring buildings had windpressure."34
been constructed by more "customary and ancient methods."29 M. Ritter argued that it would therefore be far better to in-
He then answered another Corbusian claim which had evidently crease the number of supports to 16 or 32 and to place them
been used to explain the slender stanchions. under the lateral edges of the slab containing the student rooms
Circulationcanonly be the reasonin somesmallmeasureforliftingthe as this would make the building safer, cheaper and more con-
buildingup on pilotis.The propositionis verybold andprobablyvery sistent. He too was puzzled concerning the way in which Le
costlycomparedwithmanyothermethodsinwhichtheweightwouldbe Corbusier meant to bring pipes down to the ground. Indeed, he
more evenly distributed.The considerablespans betweenpilotis are
finished up his letter to M. Jungo with a polite but unambiguous
quiteastonishingandarenot rational.30
rejection of the whole idea:
Correspondingly, M. Jungo suggested that the pilotis be multi-
I allowmyselfto sumup mythoughtson theprojectbytellingyou thatI
plied in number, that the foundations be enlarged and that some takeit to be quiteuselessin its presentform.35
better system be found for the running of ducts. It is amusing in
retrospect to see that his recommendation for the pilotis-that The creation of the ground floor curves
they be wrapped in concrete-implied a returnto the more usual It is likely that the full impact of this onslaught was kept from
Corbusian usage.
Le Corbusier by the diplomatic barrier of M. Fueter, who was
I wonderif thesesteelpilotismightnothavebeenwrappedin concreteas
clearly in favor of Le Corbusier's ideas. In any case, by early
this nakedsteelpresentsdangersfroma numberof viewpoints.31
February the architect had already had time to absorb the sug-
In like manner M. Jungo rejectedthe fully glazed south gested rearrangementsmade a week or so before, and to under-
fa;ade
on the grounds of thermal inadequacy, in favor of "strips of stand that the curatoriumwanted him to act quickly. Pilotis were
concrete or some other material."32It was as if Le Corbusier not a major concern in a series of sketches done on 3 1 January,in
were being asked to turn the clock back to the twenties, when he which the architect drastically rearranged the communal areas
had more usually employed strip windows set into stuccoed con- by bringing them down to the ground level and by enclosing
crete surfaces. them in a curved outline (Fig. 8). In the largest sketch on the
The committee evidently wanted a second opinion, so in early sheet, the outline of the entire building was clearly shown in its
February Dr. M. Ritter of the Ecole Polytechnic Federale in original form, except that the circulation was expressed as a sort
of rectangularflange detached from the rear of the main slab; in
27. See especiallydocumentwrittenby L. Jungo, 23 January1931, the same image one can see that Le Corbusier changed his mind
entitled:"CiteUniversitaire de Paris.MaisonSuisse.ProjetLe Corbu- and bent the element back into a bow-like shape with the stairs at
sier";sections4 and6 implythatmovementof communalzonesto the
groundfloorwill amelioratemanyproblemsof the scheme.(Document 33. Letter M. Ritter to L. Jungo, 3 February 1931 (FLC).
at FLC.) 34. Seenote33: "Jene puiscomprendre pourquelsmotifsl'architecte
z8. Seenote z7, section8. se r6soutAla repartitiondes charges,au parterre,sur 4 colonnesseule-
29. Seenote z7, section8. ment.Cettesolutionne fournitaucuneavantageconcernantles fonda-
30. See note 27: "Lacirculationne peut que dans unepetitemesure tions dans un mauvaisterrain.Elle a purementet simplementcomme
etreici la raisond'dleverle bitimentsurpoteaux.Lapropositionfaiteest corollairede porterles fraisde constructiondu bitiment a un niveau
tres audacieuseet probablementtres coiteuse par rapportAd'autres, considerablement 61ev6.De plus, un bitiment ex&cut6suivantle plan
semblablesdanslesquellesleschargesseraientplusreparties.Lesportees prevun'offrepas une grandestabilit6et est si sensiblepar rapportaux
considerables entrepoteauxm'etonnentet ne sontpas rationnelles." pousseeslateralesque l'on ressentiradistinctementles vibrationspro-
31. See note z7: "Jeme demandesi ces poteauxd'acierne devraient duitespar... la pressiondesvents."
pas etre enrobesdans du beton, cet acier nu, expose, presentantdes 35. Seenote 33: "Jeme permetsde r6sumerma pens6esurle present
dangera differentspointsde vue." projeten vous disantque je le tiens pour unutilisabledans sa forme
32. Seenote z7: "... des bandesde betonou autresmatieres." actuelle."

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304 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981
.~g
\,ia~,a "--;?i-
i"?s ;?-?:?:
1-""-i~~R _;-?~?i:?-':~?r??9U~?:,:~
,~?~;
a

::I~B?-~_:.:
:- :.::?~;'
.~-:-:-';-
Q ??-;si? a
"i::::::~TII~:'i~;-i??-::I~:~~ls?;?----:?in-

4QI:I
,??
;b,
i Ci
""j
j __I--~,
~....:-~-~::: ~? ------- n~_:~~T - -; , 2.
i
rS"
:":;?U:,???-;?
-.?

j L~C~
i) I ; i " i

Fig. 8. Le Corbusier,Pavilion
i i i ,
?irr j i i : 1: Suisse,threestudiesof curvedsolu-
tions to the ancillary,communal,
and stair volumes, January 1931.
?;:1;6~
-i--B?l Inscription reads: "Bon 31/1/3 -."
(FLCnumber:15469. Courtesyof
FondationLe Corbusierand
GarlandPublishing,Inc.)

one end of the bow, a solution not far from the final one. In the gradual modification from the thick walled setting to the more
sketch to the top right hand of the sheet, this new curved piece perforated and transparentworld of the hovering box.
was studied in even greater detail, while in the third and smallest The relationship of curves to rectangles was found only after
sketch (to the top left of the sheet), the ground level was also some experimentation. In another set of sketches, which appear
shown bent into a concave curve. to be preliminaryto those done on 3 I January, one can observe
From a merely practical point of view, this was, of course, Le alternatives being tested on a combination of convex, ear-like
Corbusier's response to the client's suggestion of a social space shapes, and protruding, angular, diagonal ones (Fig. 9). These
and concierge's quarters at ground level. But why the curves? seem to portray, among other things, the difficulties involved in
Again one can only hypothesize. One guesses that the move to bringing the diagonal line of approach in under the pilotis, then
the ground was a quite drastic one in the architect's mind, re- round and into the building. In this respect they serve to under-
quiring in and of itself an accentuation of volumetric contrast line the elegance of the final solution. However, internal issues
between the earthbound and the suspended. Again, one suspects were also involved, such as the combination of the concierge's
that he may have felt the earlier box somewhat wooden and quarters with the public areas, also beautifully harmonized by
crude, in its lack of acknowledgment of the pressuresof internal the concave curve.
and external circulation. In turn he may have felt it necessary to But these tentative explorations of Le Corbusier'sare interest-
be more responsive to the context, particularly to the curved ing on another level. They reveal customary patterns of formal
driveway, the diagonal line of approach through the "Cite"'and thinking of a sort often found in his paintings to portray such
the diagonal of the Rue Benoist Malon to the East. The new things as the handles on jugs or the outline of human organs. Le
forms tended to suggest kinesthetically the direction of move- Corbusier deliberately evolved a limited number of formal ele-
ment from the surroundingstowards the entranceunderthe slab. ments in his paintings within certain "rules"of combination, and
However, I believe other issues were at stake as well. The the same shape might recur in a variety of representationalcon-
formal contrast served to accentuate still further the contrast of texts.36 One might add that, on occasion, Le Corbusiermanaged
social meaning between the public and the private worlds. The to combine more than one reading in a single shape.37But, to
devices employed to reinforcethis distinction were in turn rooted return to the curves of the Pavillon Suisse doodles: is one justified
in the artist's formal syntax as painter, urbanist, and architect; in seeking out a metaphorical level in them? It does, after all,
indeed, patterns of geometrical contrast were frequently em-
ployed in all media to reinforce dualities of theme. In architec- 36. Thischaracteristic
of LeCorbusier's formalsyntaxis discussedby
tural terms, the new curved walls were obviously relatives of the EduardSekler,"TheCarpenterCenterin Le Corbusier'sOeuvre:An
free plan partitions which Le Corbusier had often dramatically Assessment."
contrasted to rectangulargrids of supports in his earlier works. 37. WilliamCurtis,"Fragments of Invention:the Sketchbooksof Le
Corbusier,"in catalogueof the sametitle, New Yorkand Cambridge,
In this particularsetting, the curved, earthbound walls allowed a MA, I981.

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 305

Fig. 9. Le Corbusier, Pavilion f t ,I

Suisse, alternative sketches of the

curved ancillary, communal areas
of the building. Late January 193 1
(?). (FLCnumber: 15423. Courtesy
of Fondation Le Corbusier and
iILL)7 n *
Garland Publishing, Inc.) i!

1N
1.-?-i~

EU -u u u [, ;? 9
- -

F ?

Fig. IO. Le Corbusier and Atelier,

7
__ i ,irziJ
study of pilotis and beams, May
1931. (FLC number: 15441.
Courtesy of Fondation Le
Corbusier and Garland Publishing, .
..:...........
.. ..... . .. . . . ................
.........
.. . .....
. . ...... .. ,; • ............. ..............
Inc.) / 1144

seem possible that the architect's realization that the communal earlier League of Nations project, curveswere also used in com-
zones would be used for lectures as well as for a refectory, may bination with rectangular flanges, in this case to contrast cere-
have tempted an "ear-like"interpretation.One would not, how- monial volumes from the Secretariatareas, or else (in the main
ever, expect such a "reference"to be too literal, or simplistic.38 faqade) to convey a sense of visual movement corresponding to
Moreover, the juxtaposition of free form curves containing the main line of movement within. The solarium on top of the
circulation with rectangular flange-like shapes was not entirely Villa Savoye was yet another preceding case of a complex curved
without precedent in Le Corbusier's architectural oeuvre. The geometry being used to respond to a number of visual directions,
most striking similarities,it seems to me, are with the circulation and to transmitenergiestowards the horizons. Now, in all of this
organs (so to say) of the third scheme for the Centrosoyus in there was an associative level to "ear-like" curves which was
Moscow, where the external curves also allowed the delicate related to what Le Corbusier called, in his later years, "an ac-
combination of a number of oblique site geometries.39 In the coustic component in the domain of form."40By this he meant to
imply forms which emitted and received the pressures of the
surroundings, and whose shape suggested a tactile equivalent to
38. For a lengthy, detailed, and documented discussion of the multiple
meaning of curves in a single Le Corbusier building, see Sekler and such pressures. I do not believe it is being too rash to claim that
Curtis, Le Corbusier at Work, especially the latter's analysis of the the concave invention of 31 January for Pavillon Suisse was a
CarpenterCenter's "lung-like" shapes in Chapters 3 and i1i. major addition to Le Corbusier'sstock of devices, and to suggest
39. For a probing analysis of the relationship of the Centrosoyus
scheme to its setting, see unpublishedstudentessay by ChristopherShort:
"Le Corbusier'sCentrosoyusProject,"1978, on file at CarpenterCenter. 40. Le Corbusier, Le Livre de Ronchamp, Paris, 1961, 35.

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306 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

that suggested in January. But these practical requirementswere

achieved at a cost. The solution led to supports of varying size, to
beams of sagging appearance and to an elevation with weak
visual emphasis at the ends. Where the Januaryscheme had sacri-
ficed utility to formal effect, this version did the opposite.
Le Corbusier needed a solution that made sense structurally,
that solved the windload problem, that was feasible in terms of
its foundations and that could accommodate down pipes and
services. At the same time the solution would have to fit his own
IM,
1•/,4.b N8i2. b•
3.
expressive criteria. For this was an architect who had written, a
a
sFa salBEMB1C ca: . ___.., decade before, that "The purpose of construction is to make
things hold together, of architecture to move us,"41 and who
wome might have contributed wholeheartedly to Geoffrey Scott's ob-
Fig. i i. Le Corbusierand Atelier, study of typical pilotis profiles, servation that: "Architecturestudies not structure in itself, but
"PoteauxRez de Chausse[sic], C.U." "No i, No z, No 3." In the the effect of structureon the human spirit."42More than that, Le
Atelier this solution was known as the "dog-bone."(FLCnumber: Corbusier needed to discover a form for the
pilotis which ade-
15577. Courtesyof FondationLe Corbusierand GarlandPublishing,
quately embodied his own ideas in this particularwork. To judge
Inc.)
from the January scheme, he was after a row of even-numbered,
almost evenly spaced supports, aligned exactly midway along the
that its contextual and visual properties made it an ancestor of bottom of the student residenceslab. The middle supportsneeded
the "accoustic" shapes of the chapel at Ronchamp. Certainly in to act as a sort of portico to the entrance, and it was important
its own individual context it was an ingenious way of reconciling that the overalleffectshould be a directionalscreenaimedtowards
a great number of interior and exterior demands. the view. Moreover, the main box should appearpoised in space,
while the area underneath should have a habitable scale. The
From "I-beam" to "dog-bone": a tale of pilotis
relationship between load and support needed to be convincing
The piloti solution shown in the sketch of 31 Januarywas the in tectonic terms (arguablythe supports had appeared too thin in
same as in the presentation drawings. It is not clear precisely the Januarysubmission,whatevertheiractual structuralcapacity),
when Le Corbusier turned his attention to his untenable struc- and the pilotis' shape needed to harmonize with both the circu-
tural solution, or how M. Ritter's stringent criticisms were re- lation flow and the main form of the building. In this respect the
layed to him. However, to judge from the dozens of studies of the problem after 31 January had one new major ingredient: the
ground level undertaken by the Atelier between February and curved and earthbound ground level functions. One suspects
July, the matter became a dominant obsession. Numerous differ- that this drastic change in and of itself would have necessitated
ent alternative treatments-including increasing the number of some change in the pilotis' form, even without the complaints of
supports, varying the sizes and types, and using double-legged Jungo and Ritter.
cradles-were attempted.Sincepilotis were such centralelements The resolution between these expressive criteriaand the afore-
of Le Corbusier's architecturallanguage, there is some value in mentioned practicalones was at last achieved in the summer (the
examining a few of these alternativetreatmentsfor what they tell precise date is not clear) in a scheme for the pilotis which became
us of his intentions. Here indeed was a case of a "type" element known as "the dog-bone" (Fig. I ).43 In this hypothesis there
which had to be modified to meet a number of practical, expres- were three main types of pilotis, all of concrete, repeated for each
sive and symbolic requirementsin a single scheme. half of the main slab. Type "no. I" was to stand towards each
Some of the dilemmas between the pragmatic and the ideal end and in plan was very like a dog-bone as its sides were formed
emerge if one analyzes a proposal of May 1931 (Fig. io). In this from two concave curves while its ends swelled outwards to
instance the structuralsupports were made from concrete as the become two knob-like extremities. The two pilotis of type "no.
committee recommended. However, to increase stability, a 2z"were to stand about one-sixth of the way in from each end of
double, splay-legged construction was placed under each end of
the main slab. Above these, and running along the slab bottom,
41. LeCorbusier,TowardsA New Architecture, Paris,1923, transla-
was a vertebrate system of girders and beams. This was in turn tion F.Etchells,1929, z3.
supported by two squat concrete columns loosely resembling an 42. GeoffreyScott, The Architecture of Humanism,London,1914,
120.
"M" in plan, and situated so that they flankedthe entrance to the
43. LetterGordonStephensonto the author,December1978: Mr.
ground floor zone. There can be no doubt that this solution was Stephenson,who now livesin Perth,Australia,workedin theAtelieron
more feasible structurally and in terms of lateral stability than the PavilionSuisseandrecalledthe "dog-bone"story.

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 307
color and material for a unified reading, they were nonetheless
adjusted for variable spacing to accentuate the two end bays and
the middle one. Masculine, stable, and robust in form, they still
made the forces of the design manifest in a way which could be
experienced directly through empathy. In that respect they re-
called Le Corbusier's earlier characterizationof the Doric order
as possessing "almost the quality of natural growth."45 Finally
the dog-bone solution was "right" in this context because it
harmonized with the concave forms of the ground level spaces.
This was more than a rhymingeffect; it was a coincidence of aim.
The new pilotis partook of both worlds of form and meaning:
~4~:i9~ those of the ground level curves and those of the poised box.
Little wonder that the solution took so long to discover and that
PierreJeanneretproclaimed, at the end of 193
x:
... We aregladthatwe persistedwithoursystemof construction(with
veryfew pointsof support)despitethestrongoppositionthatwe felton
Fig. 12z.Le Corbusier,PavilionSuisse.The symbolicmeaningand ur- all sides.46
banisticpotentialof pilotis. (Oeuvrecomplte 1929-34, 84. Courtesy
of FondationLe Corbusierand Les Editionsd'Architecture, Artemis, Even then not everyone was convinced: in the fall of 1933,
Zurich) shortly before the building was opened, there were still mut-
terings about the possible instability of the structure.47

the slab: the sides facing outwards towards the "no. Is" were The image and idea of Pavillon Suisse
again concave and curved, but the sides facing inwards towards This essay began with the suggestion that intentions behind a
the center of the slab were carved out as rectangularrecesses to
complex work of architecturelike PavillonA Suisse might be un-
receive pipes and ducts. These inner profiles anticipated the cen-
derstood as working in "hierarchies," the most important of
termost pilotis called type "no. 3," in which the solid areas be-
them standing close to the core ideas of a design, the secondary
tween the knobs of the bone were removed altogether resulting
ones allowing some greater degree of variation so long as there
in four far more slender pilotis and in a greater effect of trans-
was no threat to kernel meanings. Evidently Le Corbusier was
parency. The motivations for "bifurcating"the structure in this able to tolerate a major rearrangementlike the placement of the
way are obvious if one turns to the final plan. For by this means communal zone at ground level, because it did not totally destroy
an open, habitable space was created at ground level. More than
the big ideas of the building; indeed, it is even arguable that the
that the slender pilotis made a portico which allowed diagonal
move encouraged the artist to find ways of heightening central
views and movement towards the entrancewhile anticipatingthe
meanings through contrast. But while he was willing to allow
cylindricalpilotis of the interior. some variation on the disposition of the pilotis, their shape and
Thus the pilotis of the dog-bone solution were each attuned to
their size (within the limits of expressive criteria hypothesized
their particularsetting, but seen side-on from a distance they still
earlier),it is extremely unlikely that he would have done without
presented equal thicknesses. They succeeded in reconciling other them altogether. On the major theme of a communal box on
irreconcilables as well. Broad enough and sufficient enough in
stilts Le Corbusier would not budge, even under a barrage of
number to insure stability, they were also few enough to fit with
quite sensible criticism. Even his own practical arguments in
Le Corbusier's own notion of the ideal foundation solution of
favor of the solution were rather feeble, if not downright unten-
deep piles (which he continued to argue was sanctioned by the able. It seems then that this area of the design lay very close to the
"Servicedes Carrieresde la Ville de Paris").44Solid enough struc-
main ideas behind the building. Surely he would not have made
turally to support all the weight, they were not so fat visually as all this fuss just to preserve some views and pathways between
to destroy the poised effect of the main slab; indeed, the dog-
the access drive and the athletic fields?
bone profile created an accent of shadow between two vertical
The evidence that the pilotis represented symbolic and philo-
lines of light and made the pilotis seem less dumpy than they
actually were. Aligned under the slab as a single row, they still
45. Le Corbusier, Towards A New Architecture, 193.
implied directionality towards the athletics field while respond- 46. Letter P. Jeanneretto Fueter z6 November 193 1 (FLC):"... nous
ing to diagonal circulation as well. Sufficientlysimilar in shape, sommes heureux d'avoir persiste dans notre systeme de construction
(tr's peu de points d'appui) malgre la forte opposition que nous trouvi-
ons autour de nous
..."
44. See, for example, the "Devis Descriptif," Fall 1931. 47. For example, letter Jungo to Curatorium 14 September 1933.

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308 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

v p

-F Flit'
riti

044W I SWw
K

ASI I I

____ re 10M iir~j~eu, ___ __

or mr:-:::
Fig. 13. Viewovergreeneryand
athleticfieldsto thea'redent
communalhousesof theVille
-ec? ??:PEA
REUJKATMNDEIA
~ins: 1000: VI LE VER:ri,
Radieuse,LeCorbusier'sidealcity.
(From Le Corbusier, Ville radieuse,
Paris, I933, 158. Courtesy of
FondationLeCorbusier)

sophical concerns which transcended the local situation is to be along with monasteries,ocean liners, and collective arrangements
found in the same photographs with which this essay began, the based on the Phalanstereof Fourier (sources suggested by other
illustrations of the Oeuvre complte, Volume 2 (Fig. 12). In a scholars) were among Le Corbusier'sparadigmswhen it came to
caption to a view under the pilotis (where a gentleman is shown formulating an ideal for collective life.50In the case of the Cite
smoking a pipe) one finds the following: Universitaire, the ground was right for such explorations, since
Peoplewithoutimaginationstillfrequentlyposethisquestion:"What the setting as a whole had been conceived in reaction to the slum
usearethesepilotis?" accommodations then normal for foreign students visiting Paris.
At the festivitiesheld in the Universityof Zurichin 1933, Professor Le Corbusier took these local hints embedded in the program
Maurin,deanof theFacultyof SciencesforFrance,saidto Le Corbusier: and universalizedthem: he used the opportunity to explore cer-
"IhaveseenthePavillonSuissein theCiteUniversitaire. Don'tyouthink
tain of his own theoretical correctives to the choking and filthy
thatthe pilotisthatyou haveusedmightserveto providethe definitive
solutionto the passageof circulationof a largetown?"M. Maurin, conditions of modern urban life.
physicist,accustomedto workingin a laboratory,discoveredspontane- The site he was given was itself highly conducive to such treat-
ously the rudimentsof an urbanisticand architectural doctrinethat Le ment, for it looked south over greeneryand playing fields. In that
Corbusierhad expoundedfor ten years,withouthalt, in all his works
respect the parallelwith Le Corbusier'sideal housing type for the
andhis writings.48
"Radiant City-" the ta redent housing-was exact (Figs. 13,
It therefore seems fair to regard the Pavillon Suisse, like many
i4).51 These too were glazed on the south side and made to stand
earlier and later works by the same architect, as an exploration in a park amply supplied with the "essentialjoys" of space, light,
of an urban ideal.49 I have elsewhere argued that universities, and greenery;these too had flat roofs for relaxation and exercise;
these too had an open ground level under pilotis permitting the
flow of pedestrians, the growth of plants, the passage of motor-
48. Oeuvre complete 929-34, 84: "Des gens demunis d'imagination ized traffic. Seeking the forms of a student dormitory, Le Cor-
posentencorefrequemment cettequestion:'A quoi serventces pilotis?'
Aux fetes de L'Universitede Zurich,en 1933, le ProfesseurMaurin,
doyende la Facultede France,disait'i Le Corbusier:"J'aivu le Pavillon
Suissede la Cite Universitaire.
Ne pensez-vouspas que les pilotisque CorbusierAt Work, especially Chapter i i, entitled "The Image and Idea
vousavezemployespourraientserviriaapporterla solutiondefinitiveau Center,I argued,LeCorbusiercreatedan
of theBuilding";in Carpenter
progresde la circulationd'une grandeville?"M. Maurin,physicien emblem referring to the ideal city as a whole, rather than to just a
habitueaux travauxde laboratoire,decouvraitspontanement les rudi- fragment of it as at Pavillon Suisse.
mentsd'une doctrineurbanistiqueet architecturale que Le Corbusier 50. Curtis, "L'Universite,La Ville et L'Habitat Collectif."
avantexprim&e depuis10 annees,inlassablement,danstousses travaux 51. Someof theurbanisticimplicationsof PavillonSuissewerespelled
et sesecrits." out by Denys Lasdun and John Davies in "The Pavillon Suisse as a
49. For furtherdiscussionof urbanisticdemonstrationsand meta- Seminal Building, Talks in Progress," published anonymously in Archi-
phorsin Le Corbusier'sindividualbuildings,see:SeklerandCurtis,Le tectural Design, July 1957, 223.

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 CURTIS: LE CORBUSIER'S PAVILLON SUISSE, 1930-1931 309

/.'17 ?

?;/
J~iC
>

~::i
'

.,.

I
g
%1•
Fig. 14. Le Corbusier and Atelier, .
PavilionSuisse,axonometricshow-
ingplacement.Note theresponseof \ i

the building'scurvesto the pathsof

the settingandthe south-facing
glazed faqade, summer 1931 (?). •a

(FLC number: 15440. Courtesy of 7.

FondationLeCorbusierand ".,
GarlandPublishing,Inc.)

e::•

busier found them in the residential proposals of his ideal city; new building and did sense that it was the manifestation of a
presented with the givens of program and site, he transformed broad philosophical vision. In a report made on the final project
them into the terminology of his own myth. they wrote:
Thus the Pavillon Suisse was a sort of demonstration of ur- The architectureof the buildingexpressesthe aspirationsof our
banistic principlesas well as a highly resolved individualwork of epoch,whichtend towardsa new ideal ... it adhereswith an almost
architecture.The corollarywas that it acted as a speciesof labora- brutalfranknessto formsarisingfromthe meansof construction.The
tory in which urban solutions could be tried out on a smaller generallinesaresimpleandcalm.53
scale. As Le Corbusier wrote in the introduction to the Oeuvre Indeed, M. Fueter, Le Corbusier's unwavering supporter
complkte, Volume z: through thick and thin, and without whom the building might
HenceforthI shall no longerspeakof the architecturalrevolution never have been completed, recognized that the Pavillon Suisse
whichhas beenachieved.Now it is the era of largeworks,the period was liable to have seminal importance:
when urbanismbecomesthe dominantconcern.... So what havewe Thecommitteewas completelycharmedanddelightedby yourfourth
donein theseyears1929-1934? Firstof all a few buildings,thenmany
(final)project;it believesthat the residenceconceivedby you will give
largescale urbanisticstudies.Thesebuildingshave playedthe role of ourcountrythe greatesthonorandwill markan erain humandevelop-
laboratories.We wantedeach elementof constructionduringthat pe- ment.54
riod to be the experimentalproof which would allow us to take the
necessaryurbanisticinitiativeswithcompleteassurance.52
The clients may not have been aware of these multiple under- 53. Documententitled:"Citeuniversitaire
de Paris,MaisonSuisse,"
14 September 193 I, signed by Jungo (FLC):"L'architecturedu b itiment
lying meanings of the Pavillon Suisse, though they were certainly exprimeles aspirationsde notre6poque,quitendentversun idealnou-
right in sensing that Le Corbusier had strong and, so to say, veau.Baseesurun systemeconstructiftresmoderne,dontl'application
"irrationalreasons" of his own for clinging so tenaciously to his est faiteavecrigeur,elles'attacheavecunefranchaiseun peubrutalaux
formesdicteespar la construction.Leslignesgeneralessont simpleset
pilotis. But they did recognize the extraordinaryprobity of their calmes."
54. Letter Fueter to Le Corbusier, 29 September 1931 (FLC): "Le
comit &tait toutiafaitcharmeet raviede votre4emeprojet;il croisque
52. Oeuvrecomplete1929-1934, 19. (I haveusedthe Englishfrom la maisonconquepar vous ferale plus grandhonneura notrepayset
theoriginal.) marquerauneepoquedansle developpement humaine."The "fourth"

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310 JSAH, XL:4, DECEMBER 1981

At the end of 193 2, Fueterwrote a more personal appraisalto Le unique to a case. In general, what is needed is an explanation for
Corbusier saying that he was "bowled over" by the building and formal invention which balances the internaltendencies towards
that he thought it "perfect in every way"; he referred too to its certain patterns of form and meaning within a personal style,
"enormous artistic value."ss When the history of Le Corbusier's with the constraints and opportunities offered by the outside
clients is written, Fueterwill deserve a special place. For, without world. Le Corbusier found the forms and details of the Pavillon
clients of vision, the task of architects of vision is made all the Suisse by a gradual extension and testing of solutions whose
more difficult. validity in other contexts he already knew; but the new context
stretched his categories and presented him with new stimuli and
Reflections on the notion of style new conflicts-and the latter could only be resolved by inventing
I have concentratedon the design process of the Pavillon Suisse new forms, or, at any rate, new variations on old ones. Even then
because it illustrates so well the general contention that innova- further modifications were necessary, as elements were adjusted
tions in Le Corbusier's architectural language are best under- to harmonize with the individual building's guiding ideas, with
stood not by appealing to vague theories of stylistic or ideologi- what Le Corbusieronce called "the rules of the game" of the new
cal change, but by digging deep into the context and intentions creativeorganism.s6An order had to be found which transcended
any merely additive assembly of earlier type solutions in its
power to blend parts and whole, form and content, on a number
of different levels, and so to embody, in symbolic form, a frag-
versionswithdifferentpilotisand
projectwasthefinalone;intermediary
roomarrangements hadbeenshownto theclientin thespring. ment of Le Corbusier'sutopia.
55. Letter Fueter to Le Corbusier, 27 December 1932 (FLC): "Je ne
peux pas terminer ma lettre sans vous dire encore comme je suis ravis de
votre maison suisse qui est de toute maniere parfaite. Je vous remercie
chaleureusement de tout ce que vous avez fait et ferez encore. Je crois ButThought,"Le Cor-
56. Le Corbusier,"Nothingis Transmissible
qu'on serait unanime chez nous a reconnaitre l'6norme valeur artistique busier, Last Works, New York, 1970, 174.
de votre oeuvre."

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