Poem of the Right Angle (Le poème de l'angle droit)

Add to My Reading List

Le Corbusier

Hatje Cantz, Ostfildern, Germany, 2012, English and French

Nonfiction, Architecture

8.9 x 6.8 inches, hardcover, 176 pages

ISBN: 9783775734707

Suggested Retail Price: $60.00

From the Publisher. Between 1947 and 1953, Le Corbusier (1887-1965) produced a suite of 19 lithographs and illustrated calligraphic poems that are now regarded as the most complete statement of his worldview. The lithographs and texts of Le poème de l'angle droit are arranged in seven "zones" lettered A-G, and are assigned a thematic title and a color. Thus: A is Environment (green); B is Mind; C is Flesh (brown); D is Fusion (red); E is Character (white); F is Offering (yellow); and G is Instrument (purple). These titles, and their color codings, were in part inspired by Le Corbusier's study of alchemy, and each chapter in the book contains a subset of poetical meditations on themes related to alchemical theories of tensions between elements, colors and genders, and the relationship between spiritual evolution and architecture. Le poème de l'angle droit was published in 1955; when exhibited, it was arranged in a gridded, top-heavy cross composed of seven rows, an arrangement that is itself depicted at the beginning of the suite. This elegantly jacketed, clothbound facsimile publication of Le Corbusier's masterpiece presents a classic of architectural literature in a handsome, affordable edition for the first time. Le Corbusier's handwritten text remains in its original French throughout; an English translation of the text is included as an appendix.

On 1 book list

Daniel Libeskind

On Daniel Libeskind’s Book List

A view into Corbusier’s mind and how utterly crazy modernism actually is! You will find out the danger of the right angle.

comments powered by Disqus

Announcements

Now is Better by Stefan Sagmeister

Now is Better

By Stefan Sagmeister
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: October 2023

Combining art, design, history, and quantitative analysis, transforms data sets into stunning artworks that underscore his positive view of human progress, inspiring us to think about the future with much-needed hope.

Order the book.

Design Emergency: Building a Better Future by Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli

Design Emergency: Building a Better Future

By Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: May 2022

Rawsthorn and Antonelli tell the stories of the remarkable designers, architects, engineers, artists, scientists, and activists who are at the forefront of positive change worldwide. Focusing on four themes—Technology, Society, Communication, and Ecology—the authors present a unique portrait of how our great creative minds are developing new design solutions to the major challenges of our time, while helping us to benefit from advances in science and technology.

Order the book.

Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World’s Most Creative People by Debbie Millman

Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World's Most Creative People

By Debbie Millman
Publisher: Harper Design
Published: February 22, 2022

Debbie Millman—author, educator, brand consultant, and host of the widely successful and award-winning podcast “Design Matters”—showcases dozens of her most exciting interviews, bringing together insights and reflections from today’s leading creative minds from across diverse fields.

Order the book.

Milton Glaser: POP by Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber

Milton Glaser: POP

By Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber
Publisher: The Monacelli Press
Published: March 2023

This collection of work from graphci design legend Milton Glaser’s Pop period features hundreds of examples of the designer’s work that have not been seen since their original publication, demonstrating the graphic revolution that transformed design and popular culture.

Order the book.

Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall by Alexandra Lange

Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall

By Alexandra Lange
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Published: June 2022

Chronicles postwar architects’ and merchants’ invention of the shopping mall, revealing how the design of these marketplaces played an integral role in their cultural ascent. Publishers Weekly writes, “Contending that malls answer ‘the basic human need’ of bringing people together, influential design critic Lange advocates for retrofitting abandoned shopping centers into college campuses, senior housing, and ‘ethnocentric marketplaces’ catering to immigrant communities. Lucid and well researched, this is an insightful study of an overlooked and undervalued architectural form.”

Order the book.

Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition) by Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller

Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition)

By Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller
Publisher: Letterform Archives Books
Published: October 2023

This facsimile edition of Die Fläche, recreates every page of the formative design periodical in full color and at original size, accompanied by essays that contextualize the work, highlighting contributions by pathbreaking women, innovative lettering artists, and key practitioners of the new “surface art,” including Rudolf von Larisch, Alfred Roller, and Wiener Werkstätte founders Koloman Moser and Josef Hoffmann.

Order the book.