Unité (Planche 7) is one of the most important plates from Le Corbusier’s Unité series — a 20-part suite of original etchings created between 1953 and 1965 in collaboration with the master printers Aldo and Piero Crommelynck. Conceived in parallel with the construction of the Unité d’habitation in Marseille, these prints encapsulate Le Corbusier’s artistic philosophy of harmony between the human body, architecture, and nature.

In this composition, fluid organic forms — a reclining nude, the open hand, and abstract biomorphic shapes — are unified within a luminous field of colour. The result is a balanced interplay of geometry and sensuality, revealing Le Corbusier’s lifelong search for purity of form and emotional resonance through abstraction.

The Unité series is central to Le Corbusier’s artistic legacy, ranking alongside his Poème de l’angle droit suite (1955) as one of his most accomplished graphic achievements.

Although celebrated as one of the founding fathers of Modernist architecture, Le Corbusier was equally dedicated to painting and printmaking. His work bridges Purism — the movement he co-founded with Amédée Ozenfant — and Surrealism, blending rational structure with the spontaneity of organic life.

Recurring motifs such as the hand, bull, female nude, and natural found objects (stones, shells, pinecones) reflect his belief that “colour is an immediate and spontaneous expression of life.” In Unité, these elements are distilled into rhythmic compositions that unite architectural clarity with poetic abstraction.

Le Corbusier’s Unité etchings mark a mature synthesis of his aesthetic ideals: the balance between order and emotion, material and spirit — the essence of his entire creative vision.

Original hand-signed colour etchings from Le Corbusier’s Unité portfolio are highly prized by collectors and museums alike. Their rarity, technical excellence, and direct connection to his architectural philosophy ensure lasting value.

Printed by the renowned Crommelynck brothers — who also collaborated with Picasso and Miró — and published in a small edition of 130, these works represent Le Corbusier at his most refined and introspective.

With exceptional provenance including Pace Gallery, New York, and inclusion of related works in major public collections such as MoMA, Unité (Planche 7) stands as both a historically important and investment-worthy example of 20th-century modernism — where architecture, art, and philosophy converge in perfect harmony.