Centre Le Corbusier
Encyclopedia
The Centre Le Corbusier or Heidi Weber Museum is an art museum in Zürich
(Switzerland
) dedicated to the work of the Swiss architect Le Corbusier
. In 1960, Heidi Weber had the vision to establish a museum designed by Le Corbusier. This building should exhibit his works of art in an ideal environment created by the architect himself.
nearby Zürichhorn
in the Seefeld quarter
. It can be reached by foot (20 minutes from Bellevue) or by public transportation: Trams 2 and 4
and bus line 33 to stops Höschgasse or Fröhlichstrasse, or bus lines 912 and 916 from Bellevue to Chinagarten.
marking a radical change of his achievement of using concrete and stone, framed in steel and glass, in the 1960s created as a signpost for the future. Le Corbusier made intensive use of prefabricated steel elements combined with multi-coloured enamelled plates fitted to the central core, and above the complex he designed a 'free-floating' roof to keep the house protected from the rain and the sun.
In 1960 Le Corbusier was mandated by Heidi Weber, a Swiss art collector and patron, to conceive a public exhibition building. One year later, the first drawings for a building to be constructed in concrete were presented, in 1962 the concept was changed to a steel building. Two years later the construction was started, in 1965 Le Corbusier died, and on July 15, 1967, the Centre Le Corbusier was officially inaugurated.
The most prominent architectural element, the roof, consists of two square parts, each side having a surface of 12 x 12 metres (39.4 ft). The total ground surface measures 12 x 26.3 metres (86.3 ft), consisting of welded metal sheets and having a weight of 40 tons. The roof was prefabricated and thereafter, in the biggest possible units, transported to the building site, where it was assembled on the ground. The two finally welded parts of the roof were then lifted to their final height (9 metres (29.5 ft)) by a crane and fixed on the pillars. With the frame thus completed, the construction process benefited from the independent roof protection which was at that time already in its proper place. It consists of cubes 2.26 x 2.26 metres (7.4 ft) which were assembled on the site. Walls, windows, ceilings and floors were then screwed on to the steel frame. The walls consist of enamelled panels measuring 1.13 metres (3.7 ft) x 2.26 metres (7.4 ft). The placing of these enamel panels was planned according to a particular rhythmic system. Finally, the entire building complex was placed on a concrete ground floor. The building has two floors – five single-storied and one double-storied rooms. When constructing the building complex, more than 20,000 bolts were used.
The museum is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance
.
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
(Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) dedicated to the work of the Swiss architect Le Corbusier
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...
. In 1960, Heidi Weber had the vision to establish a museum designed by Le Corbusier. This building should exhibit his works of art in an ideal environment created by the architect himself.
Location
The building is located on the shore of the Lake ZürichLake Zurich
Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....
nearby Zürichhorn
Zürichhorn
Zürichhorn is a river delta on Zürichsee's eastern shore in the lower basin of the lake. The area is part of the parks and quays in the Seefeld quarter of the city of Zürich in Switzerland...
in the Seefeld quarter
Seefeld (Zürich)
Seefeld is a quarter in the district 8 of Zurich.It was formerly a part of Riesbach municipality, which was incorporated into Zurich in 1893. The quarter has a population of 4,923 distributed on an area of 2.45 km²; 71.6% of the district's area belongs to Lake Zurich.- Points of interest...
. It can be reached by foot (20 minutes from Bellevue) or by public transportation: Trams 2 and 4
Zürich trams
Trams make an important contribution to public transport in the city of Zurich in Switzerland. The tram network serves most city neighbourhoods, and is the backbone of public transport within the city, albeit supplemented by the inner sections of the Zurich S-Bahn, along with urban trolleybus and...
and bus line 33 to stops Höschgasse or Fröhlichstrasse, or bus lines 912 and 916 from Bellevue to Chinagarten.
Building
It is the last building designed by Le CorbusierLe Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...
marking a radical change of his achievement of using concrete and stone, framed in steel and glass, in the 1960s created as a signpost for the future. Le Corbusier made intensive use of prefabricated steel elements combined with multi-coloured enamelled plates fitted to the central core, and above the complex he designed a 'free-floating' roof to keep the house protected from the rain and the sun.
In 1960 Le Corbusier was mandated by Heidi Weber, a Swiss art collector and patron, to conceive a public exhibition building. One year later, the first drawings for a building to be constructed in concrete were presented, in 1962 the concept was changed to a steel building. Two years later the construction was started, in 1965 Le Corbusier died, and on July 15, 1967, the Centre Le Corbusier was officially inaugurated.
The most prominent architectural element, the roof, consists of two square parts, each side having a surface of 12 x 12 metres (39.4 ft). The total ground surface measures 12 x 26.3 metres (86.3 ft), consisting of welded metal sheets and having a weight of 40 tons. The roof was prefabricated and thereafter, in the biggest possible units, transported to the building site, where it was assembled on the ground. The two finally welded parts of the roof were then lifted to their final height (9 metres (29.5 ft)) by a crane and fixed on the pillars. With the frame thus completed, the construction process benefited from the independent roof protection which was at that time already in its proper place. It consists of cubes 2.26 x 2.26 metres (7.4 ft) which were assembled on the site. Walls, windows, ceilings and floors were then screwed on to the steel frame. The walls consist of enamelled panels measuring 1.13 metres (3.7 ft) x 2.26 metres (7.4 ft). The placing of these enamel panels was planned according to a particular rhythmic system. Finally, the entire building complex was placed on a concrete ground floor. The building has two floors – five single-storied and one double-storied rooms. When constructing the building complex, more than 20,000 bolts were used.
Museum
The Centre Le Corbusier is a "Gesamtkunstwerk", i.e. a total work of art, and reflects the harmonic unity of Le Corbusier's architecture, sculptures, paintings, furniture designs and his writings which is unique and possibly the only one such existing structure in the world.The museum is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance
Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of some 8,300 items of cultural property in Switzerland...
.
Literature
- Heidi Weber – 50 Years Ambassador for Le Corbusier 1958–2008. Birckhäuser Publisher, 2009, ISBN 978-3-7643-8963-5