France Guide
The Côte d'Azur
The Cité Radieuse
Address: Just west of boulevard Michelet. Bus #21 from M° Rd-Pt-du-Prado to "Le Corbusier".
A building that broke the mould, Le Corbusier's seventeen-storey block of flats, the Unité d'Habitation, was designed in 1946 and completed in 1952. The Cité Radieuse, as it's also known, only fails to amaze now because so many architects the world over have tried to imitate its revolutionary example, but up close the difference in quality between this and what followed is apparent. At ground level the building is decorated with Le Corbusier's famous human figure, the Modulor; on the third floor there is a hotel and café. Not all of the iconic rooftop recreation area can be visited, though a circuit of the running track is essential.