The representations of cities viewed from the sea have had, since the fifteenth century, a great success in urban iconography. From 1911, Le Corbusier began drawing urban landscapes in his sketchbooks, which he discovered during his trip to the Orient. Cities, fortifications or significant monuments are often depicted from the sea or rivers, because the arrival by boat allows a gradual and overall perception of the site. After his stay in South America in 1929, the architect openly expressed his appreciation for the panoramic view obtained from the boat in the middle of the bay. This point of view allows him to contextualize his urban development proposals immediately. This iconographic practice is no longer a simple function of knowledge, but it has become an instrument for realising the project. However, the horizontal view was soon accompanied by the process of flying over urban centres to understand the magnitude of the man-made and natural landscape. Through the analysis of the many images – drawings, sketches, photos – developed by Le Corbusier using different means of transport, of comments accompanying these iconographic documents and of some published texts, the paper aims to better understand the relationship between the scale of these panoramic visions and the new territorial approach developed by Le Corbusier from the Thirties onwards.

Visions "humaines" ou "infernales": les moyens de transport et la perception de la ville chez Le Corbusier

TALENTI, Simona
2015-01-01

Abstract

The representations of cities viewed from the sea have had, since the fifteenth century, a great success in urban iconography. From 1911, Le Corbusier began drawing urban landscapes in his sketchbooks, which he discovered during his trip to the Orient. Cities, fortifications or significant monuments are often depicted from the sea or rivers, because the arrival by boat allows a gradual and overall perception of the site. After his stay in South America in 1929, the architect openly expressed his appreciation for the panoramic view obtained from the boat in the middle of the bay. This point of view allows him to contextualize his urban development proposals immediately. This iconographic practice is no longer a simple function of knowledge, but it has become an instrument for realising the project. However, the horizontal view was soon accompanied by the process of flying over urban centres to understand the magnitude of the man-made and natural landscape. Through the analysis of the many images – drawings, sketches, photos – developed by Le Corbusier using different means of transport, of comments accompanying these iconographic documents and of some published texts, the paper aims to better understand the relationship between the scale of these panoramic visions and the new territorial approach developed by Le Corbusier from the Thirties onwards.
2015
9788490483732
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11386/4657377
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