Le Corbusier’s modern visual space building in Brazil

Abstract

This article aims to demonstrate how Le Corbusier -through the trips taken to Rio de Janeiro in 1929 and 1936- not only set forth the foundation of modern architecture in the country but also questioned the relationship between built space and nature. In the face of a completely different environment from that of the Old World –since it was tropical nature which prevailed-, the French-Swiss architect found himself impelled to play a game between the establishment of man and the presence of nature. Lucio Costa and the first generation of Rio's modern architects (Oscar Niemeyer, Alfonso Eduardo Reidy, Jorge Moreira and Roberto brothers among others) contributed significantly to the original interpretations subverting and expanding the categories proposed by Le Corbusier. Such endeavor -which developed the diverse means of a fluidity between the inside and the outside as well as between building and landscape- had ultimately an impact on the visual apprehension of the building along with the iconic features of this landscape: tropical forest, Pão de Açúcar and Guanabara Bay.