Abstract
Starting with the conception of the World Museum as part of the 1929 Mundaneum project, Le Corbusier continued to develop and refine that concept. The main building of the National Museum of Western Art completed in 1959, was also designed as a Museum of Unlimited Expansion prototype. NMWA has undergone conservation work and seismic base isolation work a number of times, and is therefore in generally good condition. The principal conservation works to the main building since its completion is summarized in this essay, along with other construction, extension and maintenance work carried out on the grounds.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, National Museum of Western Art, Japanese modern architecture.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 74-83
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.GSNNOIXW

Abstract
The La Tourette Convent, built by Le Corbusier in Eveux (1953–1960) was subjected to interventions very soon after its inauguration. The article presents a critical analysis of these interventions: those overseen by Fernand Gardien (until 1964) right after completion; those undertaken before the complex was listed and for which limited documentation is available (1964–1979); the restoration campaign led by the Architecte en Chef des Monuments Historiques (ACMH) Mortamet, who followed an approach based on the completion of Le Corbusier’s work; lastly the most recent campaign, overseen by the ACMH Repellin, who succeeded in devising intelligent alternative compliance measures thanks to the fire safety officials. The complex was returned to its original appearance, following an approach that has yet to come to terms with the aging of modern architectural works, but is nevertheless still widely used today in the conservation of 20th century architecture.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Couvent de La Tourette, French modern architecture, Modern monasteries.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 64-73
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.1IG880RF

Abstract
The Cité de Refuge, for the Salvation Army, was built in Paris by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, in 1933. For Le Corbusier, it represented a formal, technical and mainly social architectural manifesto, as part of his idea of new society published in La Ville Radieuse, in 1935. Seventy years after, the building is deeply transformed because the everyday use is inadequate for the contemporary community standards for the reception of homeless and current climate standards. The challenge of the last restoration campaign (2007–2015) was to reconcile the current demanding standards while maintaining and upgrading the architectural qualities of the building.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Cité de Refuge, Paris modern architecture, Pierre Jeanneret, La Ville Radieuse.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 56-63
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.4R3OD13V

Abstract
The restoration of the paintings of Le Corbusier in the Villa E-1027 was preceded by an important study phase including systematic sampling of the paintings. One purpose of the study was to determine the presence of the original paintings under the global over-paint made by a local craftsman in the seventies. Four of the eight paintings have been rediscovered, in a much better condition than expected. These paintings are a fragile testimony of the particular use of “Ripolin” by Le Corbusier, in the context of its use by others famous artists as Picasso or Picabia in the same period.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, E.1027, French modern architecture, Architecture painting restoration.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 48-55
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.787TVMEV

Abstract
This is a study of the microhistory of Villa Savoye that has already been realized, which thus does not concern its genesis (almost too studied by others). In the construction site of microhistory the reduced scale of observation is the space which may permit the reconstruction of interpersonal relationships as a historical subject and to experiment with new procedures and put interpretative categories to the test. The problem regarding the construction defects is more or less a constant in the work of Le Corbusier, in addition to the speed of the processes of both ageing and decay which are characteristic of the materials used in modern architecture. In this sense the restoration of the works of Le Corbusier is also an opportunity to bring back to the center of the critical and theoretical discussion crucial topics regarding the reflection on modern architecture: originality and authorship. Restorations such as the ones undertaken for Villa Savoye reopened the discussion on the topic of the restoration of an auteur architecture, beginning from its foundations.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Villa Savoye, Modern single-family housing, French modern architecture, Restoration.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 40-47
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.EKIZA53A

Abstract
The Maison Curutchet is the only house by Le Corbusier in America. The project was developed between 1948 to 1949 and built between 1949 to 1955 as a single-family dwelling and as a professional medical office to the well-known Dr. Pedro Domingo Curutchet in La Plata, Buenos Aires. In 2013–2014, Colegio de Arquitectos de la Provincia de Buenos Aires (CAPBA) which head office is settled there, decided to carry out a full maintenance, done with the strict criteria of minimizing the impact on the house and using as reference the original documentation. The process was coordinated by CAPBA's Enhancement Research Institute, led by the architect Pablo Mastropasqua, and directed by the architect Julio Santana.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Maison Curutchet, Modern single-family housing, Argentinian modern architecture.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 32-39
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.P4OWYVN8

Abstract
In 2011, the Fondation Le Corbusier took the fortunate initiative of requesting a historical study prior to the restoration of the villa Le Lac, built in 1924 at Corseaux-sous-Vevey in Switzerland. Submitted in 2012, the study sought to provide objective and factual information about the construction and physical evolution of the building, by exposing the initial intentions of the architect and his wishes, fulfilled or not, for its transformation, restoration or improvement, through research in several archives (Fondation Le Corbusier, Communal Archives of Corseaux and Vevey, G.T.A. in Zurich, Cantonal Archives…). The Corbusean archives, as well as the local archives and several periodicals and reviews of the period, both French and foreign, were combed. The research, based mainly on primary sources, was completed by reading the writings of the architect, his contemporaries and historians. Having been carried out prior to the material analysis of the building, the study revealed a series of new features of the house and its environs, including the garden. Thanks to an analysis of the numerous documents mentioned above, an attempt to put photographs of this evolving building in chronological order was carried out with Bénédicte Gandini. This article seeks to examine one of these new features. A feature of fundamental importance as it calls into question a well-anchored myth and is connected to recent discoveries made during restoration works on Corbusean villas of the 1920s.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Villa Le Lac, Swiss modern architecture, Finishing color pallet, Restoration.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 24-31
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.L3Z2BMBE

Abstract
The Petite Maison, or the villa Le Lac was built by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret at Corseaux, near Vevey, in 1924 for the parents of the former. Various modifications were made from then until 1973. The exteriors, façades, gardens and enclosures of this emblematic work were repaired and restored based on detailed research of the fabric and a well judged program of conservation which concluded in June 2015. This essay reports on some of the specifics of the project, the construction itself, the problems of ageing that the architects had to address, and the most recent conservation works (2013–15).

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Petite Maison, Villa Le Lac, Swiss modern architecture, Restoration.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 18-23
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.WE5292W8

Abstract
Le Corbusier died on 27 August 1965 at Roquebrune-CapMartin, near his Cabanon. Without direct heirs and driven by the fear that his carefully conserved archives and works be scattered after his death, Le Corbusier spent the last fifteen years of his life conceiving and implementing, down to its smallest details, the project of a Foundation that would bear his name. Today the activity of the Fondation Le Corbusier comprises two main undertakings: circulating his work and spreading his ideas; preserving the architect’s work and collections. Indeed as the legatee and direct offshoot of its creator Le Corbusier, the Foundation holds the moral rights to this work and therefore has a duty to constantly watch over his architectural work (and indeed the artist’s entire legacy). For the Foundation each of his buildings constitute a piece of art in and of itself. Each issue concerned in the restoration of Le Corbusier’s buildings is effectively governed by this specificity.

Keywords
Modern Movement, Modern architecture, Le Corbusier, Conservation of modern architecture, World Heritage, Fondation Le Corbusier, Maison La Roche, Maison Jeanneret, Swiss modern architecture.

Issue 53
Year 2015
Pages 12-17
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.52200/53.A.Z5DBVFNB