Le Corbusier's buildings and writings are widely considered the most important testimony of twentieth-century architecture. No estimate of the architect's genius can be made without reference to the sketchbooks that he carried with him throughout his life.
In the sketchbooks Le Corbusier drew what he saw around him and recorded his ideas touching on art, architecture, people, and places—ideas that are poetic, at times whimsical, and often startling. The sketchbooks provide an intimate view of his mind and will give a new dimension to our understanding the great architect.
When considering a new project, the architect often referred to his notations, even those made years before; and the travel sketchbooks were a perennial source of inspiration as well as a record of his own self-critique. In their revelation of the creative process, the sketchbooks are an important aid to methodological and psychological study. They are remarkable for the powerful immediacy of the drawings. In addition, the details of Le Corbusier's architectural production are of enormous historical value. Le Corbusier carefully preserved these documents and selected a special group of them for publication.
