Le Corbusier’s Unite D’Habitation, or, “housing unit of standard size,” (also known as the Cite Radieuse, or, “Radiant City”) was built from 1947-1952 in post-World War II Marsielle, France. The first (and the most famous) of Le Corbusier’s series of Unites d’Habitation housing buildings, the French architect was able to realize his Five Points of Architecture - being pilotis used to create spaces, free-form interior designs, free-form facades free from bearing loads, horizontal windows for daylighting, and rooftop grardens. The concrete city was hailed for its innovation, and inspired decades of urban housing as well as the Brutalist movement.
The Cite Radieuse is lifted on massive concrete pilotis, allowing for circulation of automobiles and pedestrians underneath. The building is supported by a column grid, which allows for wide, double story window openings in almost every apartment. The unit logic is interlocking, with both units meeting on a corridor floor and circulating in opposite manners on either side. On one side, stairs lead upwards to the apartment, which takes up the entire floor, while the other side leads downward to take up the floor under. This leads to a corridor existing every third floor, except for where interrupted by floors 7 and 8, which hold storefronts and other public shopping. The roof contains an sprinting track, gym, and wading pool.
As the main focus of 2140: Urban Institutions is Walk-Up Housing, each student was given a historical precedent in the subject to study and present. Le Corbusier's Unite d'Habitation is an early example of walk-up housing, post-WWII, that inspired urban housing design for decades. The diagram above represents the ease of access to the building for pedestrians, as well as an efficient parking and vehicular access route reminiscent of Le Corbusier's fascination with the automobile. The presentation boards below speak to the building's interior and contextual relationships.
