Pavillon Le Corbusier. Photo: ZHdK
A SUMMER WITH LE CORBUSIER Pavillon Le Corbusier stands as the architectural legacy of the visionary architect and designer. This walk-in work of art captivates visitors with its unique design language and offers a strikingly tangible experience of his creative vision. Located in Zürichhorn Park, just a few steps from Lake Zurich, Pavillon Le Corbusier unfolds as a promenade architecturale, a carefully orchestrated architectural journey and spatial choreography that showcases its architecture to best effect. “For us, the building is not merely a neutral exhibition space, it’s the main exhibit,” stresses Christian Brändle, director of Museum für Gestaltung Zürich, which has been operating the pavilion on behalf of the City of Zurich since 2019. “In his designs, Le Corbusier always sought contrasts between narrow and wide, high and low, nature and industry. All these thoughts and ideas are part of the pavilion.”
ed to devote her life to art and Le Corbusier’s ideas. Initially a dealer in his paintings and furniture, now considered design classics, she
later took on the role of developer of a building whose function was initially unclear. “She simply asked him if he wanted to build a structure in Zurich,” Brändle recalls with a smile. “He agreed.” The result is a ship-like structure based on Modulor, a system of measurement developed by Le Corbusier that is based entirely on the proportions of the human body.
Stairs. Photo: Georg Aerni
Polychromy, prefabrication with modular components and the aforementioned carefully designed path through the building: many of the central elements of Le Corbusier’s thought and design philosophy are reflected in this building, which offers stunning views of the surroundings and Lake Zurich from its small rooftop terrace high above the treetops of Zürichhorn Park.
The architectural masterpiece was realised by Heidi Weber, a woman with a clear vision. After visiting an exhibition in 1957, she decid10
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Issue 130
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June 2025
The pavilion features annually changing exhibitions that explore different aspects of Le Corbusier’s oeuvre, with the architectural structure itself always remaining the central object. “Le Corbusier was an incredibly
TEXT: SILKE HENKELE
LE CORBUSIER AS A REFLECTION OF TIME HEIDI WEBER AND THE DREAM OF A LE CORBUSIER HOUSE