The Maison La Roche in Paris is one of the properties designed by influential architect Charles-Édouard Jeanneret known as Le Corbusier and was one of his first experimental houses.
Born in 1930 in Switzerland and later took French Nationality, Le Corbusier was an influential architect and one of the fathers of modern architecture. He also dabbled in being a designer, painter, urban planner and writer.
His career spanned five decades, and he designed buildings in Europe, Japan, India, and North and South America.
Dedicated to providing better living conditions for the residents of crowded cities, Le Corbusier was influential in urban planning, and was a founding member of the Congrès International d’Architecture Moderne (CIAM). Le Corbusier prepared the master plan for the city of Chandigarh in India, and contributed specific designs for several buildings there, especially the government buildings.
On 17 July 2016, seventeen projects by Le Corbusier in seven countries were inscribed in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites as The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement.
Le Corbusier remains a controversial figure. Some of his urban planning ideas have been criticized for their indifference to pre-existing cultural sites, societal expression and equality, and his alleged ties with fascism, antisemitism, and eugenics, and the dictator Benito Mussolini have resulted in some continuing contention
Maison La Roche
Designed and built between 1923 and 1925 to show a collector’s extensive collection of modern art, it was one of his first experimental houses and demonstrates what Le Corbusier later identified as his “Five Points of a New Architecture” – a building elevated on stilts, with a roof garden, horizontal strip windows, an open plan layout and free design of the façade, all made possible by his use of new materials such as concrete. The Maison la Roche is a wonderful example of one of Le Corbusier’s first purist villa.
We decided to walk from the Javel station on the RER C line. This is not the closest to Maison La Roche, but we wanted to see the quarter-sized replica of the Statue of Liberty (see our Blog Post on this). It took us a good 20-minutes to walk from here. Now, finding the Maison La Roche is somewhat tricky, even using Google Maps. It is located on what is essentially a driveway off of a small residential street. Easy to miss. Added to that the signage is not great so you do question that you are even in the right place. When we arrived the door was shut so we wondered whether it was even open – but we bravely pressed the doorbell. The door opened and we were let inside.
This is not a grandiose house, which is sort of the point. It is angular, bare and some would say cold. Personally, I liked the starkness and the way it used floors, balconies and passageways to slowly unfold the house in front of you.
The house is small, so if you want to look around it might not take you more than half an hour. If you are a student of architecture and want to spend more time analysing the design aspects you might be there considerably longer. We were in the former group rather than the latter! Having said that we do like architecture and appreciate the importance of modern style and Le Corbusier’s influence, even if it is not specific to our taste, so we did enjoy our visit here. Of course, being an admirer of the UNESCO World Heritage program was a driver for me coming to Maison La Roche.
Planning your trip Maison La Roche
9 & 10 – Michel-Ange Auteuil stop
| Address: | 10, square du Docteur Blanche 75016 Paris |
| Website: | www.fondationlecorbusier.fr |
| Telephone: | T: +33 01.42.88.75.72 |
| Hours: | Tuesday from 10 am to 6 pm |
| Fees | 10 €: full price 5 €: reduced rate (unemployed, students) 15 €: combined ticket for the visit to the apartment workshop and the La Roche house |
The best time to visit Paris
You’ll experience crowds from May to September, but encounter the most people in July (followed closely by June and August). We’d recommend visiting between October and April if your main objective is to avoid crowds. For the warmest temperatures, October and April are the best times to visit Paris sans crowds.
Other places to visit while in Paris
1. Banks of the River Seine
The banks of the River Seine through the heart of Paris are listed as UNESCO world heritage site due to the incredible architecture of buildings such as Notre Dame, the Louvre and the Grand Palais and the examples of outstanding town planning, in particular, the large squares and avenues built by Haussmann at the time of Napoleon III have influenced town planning throughout the world.
2. Musee D’Orsay
Housed in a train station built for the 1900 World’s Fair, the Musée d’Orsay is known throughout the world for its rich collection of Impressionist paintings including masterpieces as iconic as the Bal au Moulin de la galette from Renoir or The room at Arles de Van Gogh. Its collections include works of architecture, decorative arts and photography in addition to traditional artistic fields (painting, sculpture, graphic arts). They thus draw a broad panorama of French and European art from 1848 to 1914.
3. Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles was the principal residence of the French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. Embellished by several generations of architects, sculptors, decorators and landscape architects, it provided Europe with a model of the ideal royal residence for over a century.
4. The Louvre Museum
The Louvre, or the Louvre Museum, is the world’s most-visited museum, and a historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. At any given point in time, approximately 38,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century are being exhibited over an area of 72,735 square metres.
5. The Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, also known as Opéra Garnier, is a 1,979-seat opera house at the Place de l’Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was built for the Paris Opera from 1861 to 1875 at the behest of Emperor Napoleon III. It is also famous due to its use as the setting for Gaston Leroux’s 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera.
6. Château Fontainebleau
The Château de Fontainebleau is located in the small town bearing the same name and lies 40 miles (65 km) south-southeast of Paris by road. It has been the residence of 34 kings and two emperors, Fontainebleau is the only château that was lived in by every French monarch for almost eight centuries. With 1500 rooms, it is one of the biggest châteaux in France, and the most furnished in Europe.
Getting around Paris
The centre of Paris, where tourists are likely to spend most of their time is compact and easy to get around using a combination of public transport and walking. It also quite friendly towards cyclists. Below are some of the options for getting around this beautiful city.
The Metro
Paris Metro (Métro in French, Subway or Underground in English) is the fastest way of getting around the city. The underground system has 14 interconnected lines (and 4 others under construction) and is also linked with the other RER trains.
RER
The Paris RER is a regional train transport system connecting the centre to its surrounding suburbs. RER stands for Réseau Express Régional. The RER also complements the Paris Metro, giving Parisians and tourists a larger transport network in the centre of Paris. The RER also connects the city centre with Charles de Gaulle Airport, Disneyland and Versailles.
Paris City Buses
One of the easiest and most convenient ways of getting around Paris is by bus. The buses in Paris travel 60-day routes and 40-night ones.
Taxis
Paris has over 20,000 taxis (cabs) on its streets 24 hours a day. It normally isn’t hard to hail a cab, except after midnight.
Ride Hailing
Both Uber and Bolt ride-hailing apps work in Paris.
Batobus
Both Uber and Bolt ride-hailing apps work in Paris.
Cycling
With 1,000 km of bike paths and bike lanes across the city, Paris offers a great choice of cycling routes.
If you don’t have a bicycle there are plenty of places to hire one or use one of the bicycle-sharing options, the most popular being Vélib’
Eating in Paris
French cooking is full-flavored and varied thanks to the fresh ingredients and the country’s cultural diversity.
Traditional dishes
These are some of the traditional dishes that you can try in the restaurants of Paris:
- Foie gras: fattened duck or goose liver.
- Boeuf Bourguignon: known in English as Burgundy beef, is beef stewed in red wine.
- Escargots: snails.
- Croque-monsieur: baked or fried ham and cheese sandwich.
- Quiche Lorraine: savoury open pie made of eggs, cream and other ingredients such as bacon, cheese or different varieties of vegetables.
- Fromage: cheese.
- Coq au vin: chicken and vegetable casserole cooked in wine.
- Pot-au-feu: beef stew with vegetables.
- Brioche: pastry made of eggs, baking powder, milk and sugar.
- Tarte Tatin: thin caramelised apple pie.
- Crepe: thin type of flour pancake that can be filled with savoury or sweet ingredients.
- Ratatouille: stewed dish made of aubergines, tomato, courgette, peppers and basil.
French cheeses
France is one of the top cheese makers worldwide. Known by many as the country of 1,000 cheeses, it is possible to eat a different type of cheese every day of the year.
Walking around the city and especially its markets, visitors will be surprised by the quality and quantity of cheese available. The country produces over 400 different varieties.
Patisseries and pastries
Some of the most exquisite French foods are the bread, pastries and desserts. Paris has thousands of boulangeries and patisseries (bakeries), where visitors will be able to enjoy some of the most delicious sweet goodies just out of the oven.
We recommend all travellers to try the brioche and the renowned pain au chocolat, similar to a croissant, but with an oozing chocolate centre. A curious fact is that the famous croissant is originally from Austria, not from France.
When to eat?
Generally, the French eat quite early. Most restaurants in Paris open from midday until 3 pm for lunch and then from 7:30 pm – 11 pm for dinner.
Be that as it may, it won’t be difficult for tourists to find restaurants open for longer hours since Paris is a very cosmopolitan city and is used to tourism.
Prices
Although it’s not a cheap city, the prices of restaurants in Paris are not much higher than those usually found in the main European capitals.
Where to stay Paris
Paris is very spread out and its top attractions are far apart. If you want to find accommodation in the most elegant parts of the city, the best options are Champs-Élysées, Place de la Concorde, the Louvre, and Opéra Garnier. If, on the other hand, you prefer a lively neighbourhood and want to enjoy the city’s nightlife, we recommend the Latin Quarter.
To summarize, we recommend finding accommodation on both sides of the Seine, from the Île de la Cité to the Eiffel Tower. These areas are safe, central and ideal to stay in.