Posted in Showroom Spotlight
Borne Béton Lamp Speaks to Le Corbusier’s Architecture
![Corbusier Benton](https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier_benton.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=2350&s=ac1a6ddf47852d228af99e123ea161ef 2350w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier_benton.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1565&s=b455d081e8ef83b966abb386f7dcecf0 1565w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier_benton.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1000&s=3d440879d98fc1c8ac6feb50648cc874 1000w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier_benton.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=600&s=7a3896b08304af99e08eb36c8e8267bd 600w)
Le Corbusier , over his five-decade career, put forth a vision of design as an entity defined by striking elemental forms and driven by function. The Swiss-French architect dismissed styles of the past and unnecessary ornamentation. He focused his furniture designs on inexpensive materials that could be mass produced and developed ambitious architecture and planning projects that promoted new ways of living. Le Corbusier’s point of view helped establish the influential International Style and positioned him as one of the central figures in modern design.
Born in 1887 in Switzerland as Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris, he first learned about art, architecture, and craftsmanship when he attended the École des Arts Décoratifs at La Chaux-de-Fonds. Known for his writings on design, he developed his pseudonym, Le Corbusier, when he began penning articles for L’Esprit Nouveau in Paris in 1920.
He went on to complete notable structures such as the United Nations headquarters in New York City, which Le Corbusier designed alongside Oscar Niemeyer; the Villa Savoye in Poissy, France; and Unite d’Habitation in Marseille, France. The latter project was completed in 1952 in collaboration with Portuguese artist Nadir Afonso as part of an effort to respond to the housing shortages in post-WWII Europe.
The first iteration of the Unité d’Habitation referred to as Cité Radieuse, was defined by the pervasive use of “béton brut” — raw concrete. The project was the first of a new housing series for Le Corbusier that focused on communal living, creating a space where the inhabitants could shop, play, live, and come together in a “vertical garden city.” The roof of the development functioned as a garden terrace that had a running track, club, kindergarten, gym, and pool. Additionally, there were shops, medical facilities, and a small hotel distributed throughout the building.
Considered the origin of the brutalist movement, the Unité d’Habitation was decorated with raw concrete lamps that illuminated common areas shared by tenants of the complex. Those lights, called Borne Béton, were also used in Le Corbusier’s Bhakra Dam and Sukhna Dam projects in Chandigarh, India. Reissued by NEMO and available here at Context Gallery The lamp is a handcrafted product; slight differences make each one unique. Available in two sizes — a large floor version and a small table version —the Borne Béton is suited for indoor or outdoor use. Its simple design speaks to the lyricism of form and refined functionality that is evident both in the Unité d’Habitation project and Le Corbusier’s oeuvre at large.
![Corbusier](https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1182&s=c0668dd9c9b607e27667c5c613b36210 1182w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1000&s=501f2eb8de7d1736511870c7a1cf13c6 1000w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/corbusier.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=600&s=7b9b2cced7d4a6c5a2898cb4d7b6dcf5 600w)
![Nemo Borne Beton Petite](https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1200&s=684d102537bfc2d002d0b87140b6b41d 1200w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1000&s=6b2294e52cd3229018738450835f9512 1000w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=600&s=5eeeef1add620029163bb2ad87c0963a 600w)
![Nemo Borne Beton Petite Context 4 1](https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite-CONTEXT-4-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1200&s=f48e6321de0a9c0dba624aec2af269cc 1200w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite-CONTEXT-4-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1000&s=3f41fab8740db23dc5884058be24e6ad 1000w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/products/n/nemo-borne-beton-petite/Nemo-Borne-Beton-Petite-CONTEXT-4-1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=600&s=07ff9272fac2f2262ba8402539609dee 600w)
![Le Corbusier](https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/Le-Corbusier-architecture.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1600&s=e72ff4a243d7c3672f551be210ebe468 1600w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/Le-Corbusier-architecture.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1565&s=53a6715682a67706d45fada455217873 1565w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/Le-Corbusier-architecture.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=1000&s=aeb376fb88614e700d993ebfb900ddec 1000w, https://context-gallery.imgix.net/images/Le-Corbusier-architecture.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=clip&q=60&w=600&s=24d68add9360486bcac3ba39ab96438f 600w)