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The Representation of Mary in the Architecture of Le Corbusier's Chapel at Ronchamp

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2009

Flora Samuel
Flora Samuel
Affiliation:
Lecturer in architectural design at Cardiff University.
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Extract

In the Fondation Le Corbusier in Paris there is a little guide for pilgrims that was given to the architect when he began work on the pilgrimage chapel of Notre Dame du Haut Ronchamp (1955), probably the most influential yet contentious building of the twentieth century (fig. 1). Within the guide, the section on the cult of Mary has been heavily underlined and in the margin is the word “feminism,” written by Le Corbusier, a very unusual departure for a man of his times. In this article I will examine the role of Mary in the work of Le Corbusier and discuss the way in which she is interpreted in the architecture of Ronchamp.

Type
Articles
Information
Church History , Volume 68 , Issue 2 , June 1999 , pp. 398 - 416
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of Church History 1999

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References

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