In Zurich, the renovated pavilion of Le Corbusier, the last completed project of the great modernist and the only glass and steel building in his track record, has opened to the public. Restoration work was carried out from October 2017 to February 2019, with the restoration being carried out by local architects Silvio Schmed and Arthur Rüegg.
The pavilion, built in 1967, was conceived as a platform for a permanent exhibition of Le Corbusier's works: drawings, sculptures, furniture, photographs. Generally a building with an area of 600 m2 is a kind of "programmatic" object, which reflected the architect's worldview and his "proprietary" techniques. Thus, combining art, architecture and life itself under one roof, Le Corbusier presented the material embodiment of his interpretation of the "synthesis of arts".
All elements here are designed in accordance with the proportional system "modulator" developed by him, and the constructive part - according to the precepts of industrial housing construction - was manufactured at the factory and assembled on site. Common places that are found in other works of the architect are also an open staircase (inside), a ramp (outside) and a small roof garden. “A staircase separates one floor from another; a ramp connects them,”explained Le Corbusier.
And finally, the pavilion is designed with the principles of "architectural walk" in mind - a carefully thought-out route that provides the viewer with favorable vistas for getting to know the building. In the video below - a tour of the building (even before restoration):
The decision to restore the building came after the owner of the building changed in 2014. From the very beginning, the building belonged to Heidi Weber, a Swiss designer, gallery owner and philanthropist. Actually, without Heidi Weber, her patience and perseverance, the pavilion would not have appeared. It was she who managed to get a building permit from the Zurich authorities and persuade Le Corbusier to make this project: the architect had strained relations with his homeland, in the early 1920s he moved to Paris and even took French citizenship. Work on the building began in 1964 and was suspended due to the death of Le Corbusier in August 1965. After that, Weber assembled a new team and in two years completed construction, which was also carried out with her money.
However, later it turned out that it was almost impossible for Weber to bear the costs of the foundation and operation alone. Therefore, the institution worked intermittently, and the safety of the building left much to be desired.
The ownership passed to the city after the lease on the land expired. The municipality appointed the Museum of Design (Museum für Gestaltung Zürich) as the new operator of the institution. “The city expected Heidi Weber to run this place as a museum, but for a private person this is simply not possible, -
explains the director of the Museum of Design Christian Brändle. "There was a lot of corrosion and rust everywhere." To reach the problem areas, the restoration team first had to peel off many layers of paint as the former owner tried to fight the rust. “[The same spot] was painted over seven times,” Brendle says.
The head of the museum was pleased with the restoration carried out by Silvio Schmed and Arthur Ruegg. “They took care of every cog,” he says.
The completion of the restoration was marked by the opening of the exhibition Mon univers ("My Universe"), which gives an idea of the "creative space" of the modernist and reminds of another of his hobbies - collecting. Here is an extensive collection of drawings, furniture, photographs, sculptures and paintings that the architect collected all his life. He used many of these items as sources of inspiration. The exhibits were provided by the Le Corbusier Foundation in Paris and the Basel Museum of Antiquities, some of the items are from private collections. The exhibition will run until November 17, 2019.
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Image 
zooming 1/8 Private collection of Le Corbusier. Photo by René Burri, 1959. From the collection of the Zurich Design Museum © Magnum Photos
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zooming 2/8 Le Corbusier with his private collection in his studio. Photo by René Burri, 1959. From the collection of the Zurich Design Museum © Magnum Photos
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zooming 3/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
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zooming 4/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
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zooming 5/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
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zooming 6/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
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zooming 7/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
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zooming 8/8 Le Corbusier's private collection © Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zurich School of Fine Arts
The opening of the renovated architectural monument was overshadowed by the conflict between the Zurich administration and Heidi Weber. After the building passed into the hands of the city, the name Weber disappeared from the name of the museum, although the authorities promised to keep it. Previously, the art space was called Center Le Corbusier - Heidi Weber Museum, now the official name sounds simply like the Pavilion of Le Corbusier. In addition, the former owner received too little compensation from the city - just over a million Swiss francs (911 thousand euros). At the same time, construction costs alone, taking into account inflation, amounted to 18 million francs (16 million 400 thousand euros). Heidi Weber tried to sue, but to no avail.
