Association maison Blanche

Le Corbusier opus 1
In February 1912, Charles-Edouard Jeanneret opened his own architectural office in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the city of his birth, and where he began his career after completing his education at the advanced course of the Ecole d’Art. The architect who later took the name “Le Corbusier” was 25 years old. He had distanced himself from the spirit of Art Nouveau, traveled in Europe and in the Middle East, learned from the masters of modern architecture... The Maison blanche was his first independent project and a very personal creation. It was destined for his parents, and he lived and worked there himself for several years.

Building began two months after Charles-Edouard Jeanneret launched his independent career, for the young architect it was a veritable experimental laboratory and an educational experience: he tested ideas, techniques, material. The finished work did not completely correspond to the official plans.

In November 1912, six months after building began, the family moved into the villa.

Return to the Roots
From 1912 to 1919, Charles-Edouard Jeanneret made various additions and modifications; therefore the restoration does not aim to re-establish the original state of the building, but respects subsequent changes made under his auspices.

Our knowledge about the first years of the building and its surroundings are based on a systematic analysis of archives, examination of plans and old photographs, pictorial surveys, and an archaeological analysis.

Changes to the façades, the roof, and to the walls and floors of the rooms have been restored to the textures and colors of the beginning of the 20th century. Most of the radiators could be kept. The old sanitary installations in the bathrooms were replaced; the kitchen, on the other hand, had to be renovated to correspond to current needs.

The complete furnishings have been restored to evoke the atmosphere seen in photographs of some rooms from the times of the Jeannerets. Other furnishings are local creations from the time of the original construction (the sofa for example).