Curator, Barry Bergdoll: This is the interior of the Maison Blanche in Corbusier’s hometown. The twenty-five year old Le Corbusier designed the house, one of his first, for his parents in 1912.
Architect, Jean-Louis Cohen: At the Maison Blanche, we perceive that Le Corbusier’s interiors were very often oriented towards the discovery of the exterior landscape. In a way, they were machines to look outdoors and not simply interiors that were meant to be cozy. The Maison Blanche is situated on a slope overlooking the city of La-Chaux-de-Fonds, hence through the wide window of the living room the parents of Le Corbusier could have impression of being the masters of the city.
Barry Bergdoll: The interior offers glimpses into the life of the Jeanneret family. Le Corbusier designed everything inside, from the furniture down to the smallest detail.
Jean-Louis Cohen: This interior gives an idea of the bourgeois environment in which Le Corbusier was born--his dad working for a watch industry, his mother a very accomplished musician. We see the desk he designed for his mother on the right side, which is almost a work of architecture, per se.