Le Corbusier and sculpture

The impact of Le Corbusier's painted work on his architecture has been known for quite some time. The privileged relations that he maintained with painters like Amedee Ozenfant and Fernand Leger are also known; however very few studies have been made concerning his knowledge of and his interest in sculpture. This article seeks to demonstrate how the ties made with the sculptors of his time, from his meeting Aristide Maillol to his friendship with Jean Arp, and above all his collaboration with Joseph Savina, would also plane an important role in his understanding and his conception of space. These exchanges reveal implicitly the increasingly close dialogue established between the two domains of sculpture and architecture during the course of the 20(th) century, and which, today, seems obvious.