France: Ronchamp – Notre-Dame du Haut

This is a UNESCO-listed modernist church was design by Le Corbusier in 1950 and inspired by the architect’s obsession with seashells. There was an ancient church here dating back to the 4th century, but it was destroyed by the Allied bombing in 1944. Corbusier wanted to focus on natural elements and make the church to be part of its environment. So it kind of looks like a mix of a giant seashell and a mushroom – thick curved walls are wide at the base and tapering at the top, the clam-shell-like roof appears floating and is supported by hidden columns, and Irregular pinhole windows of colored glass of varying sizes create a play of light and shadow. The interior is equally minimalist and symbolic