I am sure you would recognise his architecture… but have you ever seen sketches or paintings by Le Corbusier?

A retrospective on the life and work of Le Corbusier, An Atlas of Modern Landscapes, is showing at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This selection of drawings and paintings by the architect documents the various stages of his career, as presented in the exhibition.

Born in 1887 under the name Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, he learnt to draw by exploring the landscape surrounding his home in Switzerland. Towards the end of this time he visited cities across Europe, including Vienna, Athens, Paris and Berlin.

In 1922 he opened an architecture studio with his cousin Pierre Jeanneret (1896–1967), developing various theoretical schemes and constructing villas for the Paris elite.

In 1929 he developed plans for Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Montevideo, as well as a masterplan for the transformation of Algiers.

Un Embrasement (a blaze)

Blue mountains, 1910

Parthenon, Athens, 1911, perspective of the colonnade and the landscape

La Cheminée (the fireplace), 1918

Palace of the League of Nations, Geneva, 1927

Music pavilion for Villa Church, Ville d’Avray, 1927-29

Urban plan for Rio de Janeiro, 1929

Plan Obus, Algiers, 1932, version A, general plan

Plan for Buenos Aires, 1929, profile view from the Rio de la Plata

Capitol Complex, Chandigarh, 1951-65

Governor’s Palace, Chandigarh, 1951-65

Chapelle Notre-Dame du Haut, Ronchamp, 1950-5

Via: Dezeen