Claude-Nicolas Ledoux: Architecture and Utopia in the Era of the French Revolution

Architect of the French revolution, Claude-Nicolas Ledoux (1736 1806) was also one of the most revolutionary architects of the eighteenth century. His famous guard and customs houses are familiar to every traveler to Paris, and his Saltworks at Chaux an important architectural pilgrimmage site. His concept of an architecture parlante, or "speaking architecture," one that clearly symbolizes its function, has influenced generations of architects. This concept has served as a source of inspiration for unusual designs, especially since the 1930s, when Ledoux was rediscovered by Emil Kaufmann in his famous study "From Ledoux to Le Corbusier." Claude-Nicolas Ledoux is an accessible portrait of the forerunner of modernity by the great architectural theorist and historian Anthony Vidler.