Unite d’Habitation – Five Buildings by le Corbusier

Shame on me, but I knew that there was more than one Unite d’Habitation by le Corbusier, but I didn’t realize that there are five:

The first and most famous of these buildings, also known as Cité radieuse (radiant city) and, informally, as La Maison du Fada (French – Provençal, “The House of the Mad”), is located in Marseille, France, built 1947-1952. One of Le Corbusiers’s most famous works, it proved enormously influential and is often cited as the initial inspiration of the Brutalist architectural style and philosophy.

The Marseille building, developed with Corbusier’s designers Shadrach Woods and George Candilis, comprises 337 apartments arranged over twelve stories, all suspended on large piloti. The building also incorporates shops with architectural bookshop, sporting, medical and educational facilities, a hotel which is open to the public, and a gastronomic restaurant, Le Ventre de l’Architecte (“The Architect’s Belly”). The flat roof is designed as a communal terrace with sculptural ventilation stacks, a running track, and a shallow paddling pool for children. The roof, where a number of theatrical performances have taken place, underwent renovation in 2010. It has unobstructed views of the Mediterranean and Marseille.

Marseille, France 1947-1952

Unite d'Habitation, Marseille

Unité d'Habitation (Marseille, France)

Unite d'Habitation, Marseille

Unite d'Habitation, Marseille

Unité d'Habitation, Marseille

Nantes-Rezé, France 1955

Nantes 11_05_06

nantes town hall 02 - looking towards unite

Unité d'habitation Le Corbusier Rezé

Berlin-Westend, Germany 1957

Le Corbusier @ interbau

Untitled

Briey, France 1963

Unite d'habitation - Briey en Foret

Unité d'Habitation, Briey-en-Forêt, France, 1956

Le Corbusier - Briey

Firminy, France 1965

Unité d'Habitation, Firminy

Le Corbusier Unité d'habitation

L'unite d'habitation

Unité d'habitation de Firminy