Pierre Jeanneret

PIERRE JEANNERET (1896-1967)

In conjunction with designer Charlotte Perriand and his illustrious cousin Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret created experimental interiors which established their atelier as a leader in modern design. Advocating a new vision of architecture which emphasized order and harmony rather than ornament; the team brought light and air into their buildings through a prodigious use of glass and elimination interior walls. Minimal furniture and sleek design further contributed to a sense of spaciousness and formal purity. Though an avid practitioner of the geometric austerity which defines modern design, Jeanneret often enlivened his furniture with strong diagonals or lighter materials, such as cane and wood. He also brought a humanist perspective to his cousin's utopian doctrines of modern planning.
Late in his career, the designer made a singular contribution to the post-war urban planning movement in the capacity of Chief Architect at Chandigarh, India. Envisioned by the newly independent government as a throughly modern city which could accomodate refugees of Partition; Chandigarh was to offer amenities such as running water and comfortable housing to people of all classes. First under Le Corbusier's direction and then independently, Jeanneret remained at the site for fifteen years until shortly before his death; wrestling with the transition of a traditional society to the modern world and creating many important experiments in urban housing and government building.