TIENNE- LOUIS

(18th

BOULLE

CENTURY

TOA-2
ARCHITECTURAL THEORIST NO.7
6 B TOSA
BY: Ar.NIDHI JOSHI

INTRODUCTION

BORN-February 12, 1728,Paris,France.

DIED-February 4, 1799,Paris, France.
OCCUPAION- French visionary
neoclassical architect, theorist, and
teacher.

BOULLES
1. He originally wanted to be a
painter, but, following the wishes of
his father, who was an Architect
himself, he turned to architecture.

LIFE

Jacques-Franois Blondel
1705-1774
French architect, theorist,
writer &teacher

2. He studied under Jacques-Franois

Blondel, Germain Boffrand and
Jean-Laurent Le Geay, (the grand
prix winner of 1732) from whom he
learnt the mainstream French
Classical architecture of the 17th
and 18th century and the
Neoclassicism that evolved after
the mid-century.
3. By the age of nineteen he had
opened his own studio.
4. He spent his entire life in Paris,
working first as a painter and later
as an architectural theorist.

Germain
Boffrand
1667-1754
French architect

BOULLES

LIFE CONTD.

5. At the age of 19, he became a teacher at the Ecole des Ponts et Chaussees ( French School
of Civil Engineering ).
6. In 1762 at the age of 34 he joined Academi d' Architecture as a second class member and
became actively involved in its various intrests,including education,construction,administration
and public buildings.
7. He became chief architect toFrederick II of Prussia, a largely honorary title.
8. At the age of 52 he became a first class member of the Academy, until the National Convention
abolished the Academy in 1793.
9. He was one of the founders of theInstitut National des Sciences et des Artsin 1795.(age
67)
10.Political and economic circumstances in France limited his commissions to a few large houses.
11.He designed a number of private houses from 1762 to 1778, though most of these no longer
exist; notable survivors include the :
. Htel Alexandre (1763-66) and
. Htel de Brunoy ( 1774-79), both in Paris.
12.Although few of his architectural designs were built, his theories and drawings enjoyed a large
public following.
13.Together with Claude Nicolas Ledoux he was one of the most influential figures of French
neoclassical architecture.

THE HTEL ALEXANDRE IN PARIS.

THE HTEL ALEXANDRE IN PARIS.

HTEL

DE BRUNOY

GARDEN ELEVATION

HTEL

DE BRUNOY

SECTION AND PLAN( ENGRAVING FROM KRAFFT AND RANSONNETTE)

HTEL

DE BRUNOY

Htel de Brunoy, Paris, France, tienne-Louis Boulle, 178384, perspective, drawing of approx 1785, British Library,
London.

FYI- NEOCLASSICAL ARCHITECTURE

Neoclassical architectureis an
architectural styleproduced by the
neoclassical movementthat began in the mid18th century.
In its purest form it is a style principally
derived from the architecture of
classical antiquity, theVitruvianprinciples,
and the architecture of theItalianarchitect
Andrea Palladio.
In form, Neoclassical architecture emphasizes
the wall rather thanchiaroscuroand maintains
separate identities to each of its parts.
The style is manifested both in its details as a
reaction against theRococostyle of
naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural
formulae as an outgrowth of some classicising
features ofLate Baroque.
Neoclassical architecture is still designed
today, but may be labelled
New Classical Architecturefor contemporary
buildings.
In Central and Eastern Europe, the style is
usually referred to asClassicism(German
:Klassizismus), while the newer revival styles
of the 19th century until today are called
Neoclassical.

FYI

The Acadmie royale

d'architecture (Royal Academy of
Architecture) was a French
learned society founded on
December 30, 1671 by Louis XIV,
king of France under the impulsion
of Jean-Baptiste Colbert.
Its first director was the
mathematician and engineer
Franois Blondel (16181686).
The Acadmie included of school of
architecture.

Suppressed in 1793, this Acadmie

was later merged in 1816 into the
Acadmie des beaux-arts,
together with the Acadmie de
peinture et de sculpture
(Academy of Painting and Sculpture,
founded 1648) and the Acadmie
de musique (Academy of Music,
founded in 1669).

The Acadmie des beaux-arts is now

Frederick II(24 January 1712 17

August 1786) was King
ofPrussiafrom 1740 until
1786.Frederick's achievements
during his reign included his
military victories, his
reorganization of Prussian
armies, his patronage of the Arts
and the Enlightenment in
Prussia, and his final success
against great odds in theSeven
Years' War. He became known
asFrederick the Great

FYI - PRUSSIA
Prussia's power grew and in 1772, under King Friedrich II (Frederick the
Great), consisted of the provinces of Brandenburg, Pomerania, Danzig, West
Prussia and East Prussia (modern day East Germany, northern Poland, and a
small portion of the Soviet Union).

BOULLES GEOMETRIC

STYLE

1. It was as a teacher and theorist at the cole Nationale des Ponts et Chausses between 1778
and 1788 that Boulle made his biggest impact, developing a distinctive abstract geometric
style inspired by Classical forms.
2. Despite the innovativeNeoclassicismof his executed works, Boulle achieved a truly lasting
influence as a teacher and theorist. Through his atelier passed such masters as AlexandreThodore Brongniart, Jean-Franois-Thrse Chalgrin, Jean-Nicolas-Louis Durand, and Louis-Michel
Thibault. In all, he taught for more than 50 years.
3. His work was characterized by the removal of all unnecessary ornamentation, inflating
geometric forms to a huge scale and repeating elements such as columns in huge
ranges.
4. Boulle promoted the idea of making architecture expressive of its purpose, a doctrine
termed Architecture parlante("talking architecture") by his detractors, which became an
essential element in Beaux-Arts architectural training in the later nineteenth century.
5. Boullee admired the clear, bold lines of neoclassic architecture but considered emotion equally
as important to architecture as classical rules of proportioning.
6. His style was most notably exemplified in his proposal for a cenotaph for the English
scientistIsaac Newton
7. For Boulle regularity, symmetry and variety were the golden rules of architecture.

BOULLEES

THOERY

1. At 52 he began writingArchitecture, Essai sur l'art, (Essay on the Art of

Architecture) which he finished between 1790 and 1793, although it was not
published until 1953.
2. His book is illustrated with drawings of projects for public buildings he
designed between 1778 and 1788: churches, palaces, courts, assemblies,
theaters, libraries, museums, city gates, memorial arches, bridges, lighthouses,
cemeteries, cenotaphs .His projects were based on a wholly (impractical) grand
scale.
3. In his essay, he pleaded for a monumental architecture which employed both
emotion and reason. Boulles emphasis on the psychology of the viewer is
a principal theme of hisArchitecture, essai sur lart.
4. Boulle begins his book by asking what is architecture? and denies that it is
theart of building, to quote Vitruvius. Architecture is a product of the mind, the
fruit of spiritual and intellectual activity and precedes construction. He clarifies that
the art of architecture is different from the construction technique. Art is
generated by a creative inspiration, while technique is only a mechanical
process. He thus confronts the Vitruvian approach. But Boulle goes farther: the
first issue in architecture is neither technical nor aesthetic, but philosophical and
ethical.

BOULLEES

THEORY

BOULLEES

THEORY

BOULLEES

THEORY

5. In his important theoretical designs for public monuments, Boulle sought to

inspire lofty sentiments in the viewer by architectural forms
suggesting the sublimity, immensity, and awesomeness of the natural
world, as well as the divine intelligence underlying its creation.
6. At the same time he was strongly influenced by the indiscriminate
enthusiasm for antiquity, especially for Egyptian monuments, prevalent in
Europe at that time.
7. In his famous essay, La Thorie des corps, ( The theory of the body )Boulle
investigated the properties of geometric forms and their effect on the
senses, attributing innate symbolic qualities to the cube, pyramid,
cylinder, and sphere, the last of which he regarded as an ideal form.
8. The distinguishing aspect of Boulles mature work is his abstraction of the
geometric forms suggested by ancient works into a new concept of
monumental building that would possess the calm, ideal beauty
ofclassical architecturewhile also having considerable expressive
power.

CENOTAPH FOR SIR ISAAC NEWTON

Possibly Boulles most emblematic project. The project aims to explore

the idea that the architect should aim at the sublime.

CENOTAPH FOR SIR ISAAC NEWTON

Newtons cenotaph plan.

It was designed to isolate, to reinvent, the huge movement of time and
celestial phenomena. Inside, the viewer is isolated too, on a small

CENOTAPH FOR SIR ISAAC NEWTON

Boulle, Cnotaphe Newton (1784)
The building itself was a 150m (500ft) tall
sphere encompassed by two large barriers
circled by hundreds of cypress trees.
Though the structure was never built, its design
was engraved and circulated widely in
professional circles.
Basically, the building is a large sphere that
represents both the land and Newtons
discoveries. Its access can be gained through
the base and, despite its size, only a small area
of such base can be occupied.
The small sarcophagus for Newton is placed
at the lower pole of the sphere.
The design of the memorial creates the effect
of day and night. The night effect occurs
when the sarcophagus is illuminated by the
sunlight coming through the holes in the
vaulting.
This gives the illusion of stars in the night
sky. The day effect is an armillary sphere (an
old astronomical instrument composed of rings
showing positions of important circles of the
celestial sphere) hanging in the centre that
gives off a mysterious glow.

Light represents Newton, lighting the knowledge of

mankind.

CENOTAPH FOR SIR ISAAC NEWTON

From the outside, one can only see half the
sphere, supported by two cylinders. Around
this sphere, along its perimeter, Boulle
places rows of trees.
This image recalls Roman tradition in the
great mausoleums of Augustus and
Hadrian, even though they are different
building types, since a mausoleum is a
grave and a cenotaph is a monument
dedicated to the memory of someone,
but inside which no body is preserved.
Boulles Monument intended for tributes
due to the Supreme Being is an
expression
of
the
metaphorical,
emotional, and symbolic aspects of the
architectures
purpose.
Function,
shape, setting, lighting, and even
scent were all considered in an effort
to realize the unique character of the
monument within a defined aesthetic
environment. Boulle believed that a
buildings character should be poetic and
evoke an appropriate feeling in those who
experienced it

BOULLE`S ANALYSIS:
Boullee was a sensationalist in his aesthetics and spoke of architecture as poetry, by
which he meant a kind of poetry composed of symmetry, regularity, varied form, and
character
How is it that we can recognize the shape of a regular volume at a glance?

It is because it is simple in form, its planes are regular and it repeats itself.
But since we gauge the impression that objects make on us by their clarity, what makes us
single out regular volumes in particulars is the fact that their regularity and their
symmetry represent order, and order is clarity.

In contrast irregular forms give rise to confusion.

It is obvious from the above remarks that man had no clear idea of the shape of volumes
before he discovered the concept of regularity.

Once observed that the shape of a regular volume is determined by regularity, symmetry
and variety, then it is understood that proportion is the combination of these properties.

Regularity gives it a beautiful shape and form.

Symmetry gives it order and proportion.
variety gives it planes diversity as we look at them.
Thus the combination and the respective concord which are the result of all these
properties, give rise to volumetric harmony.

BOULLEES

ANALYSIS

7. In a series of projects for public monuments, culminating in the design

(1784) for an immense sphere that would serve as
acenotaphhonouring the British physicist Isaac Newton, Boulle gave
imaginary form to his theories. The interior of the cenotaph was to be
a hollow globe representing the universe.
8. To bring geometric forms to life, Boulle used striking and original
effects of light and shadow.
9. He also emphasized the potential for mystery in building, often
burying part of a structure.
10.His poetic approach to architecture made extensive use of
symbolism. For example, his Palais Municipal rests on four pedestallike guardhouses, to symbolize that society is supported by law.

BOULLEES

ANALYSIS

Palais Municipal rests on four pedestal-like guardhouses, to symbolize that

society is supported by law.

BOULLE`S ANALYSIS:
In architecture a lack of proportion is not generally very obvious except
to the eye of the connoisseur.
It is thus evident that although proportion is one of the most
important elements constituting beauty in architecture, it is not
the primary law from which its basic principles derive.
It is easy for the reader to surmise that the basic rule and the one that
governs the principles of architecture, originates in regularity and
also that any deviation from symmetry in architecture is inconceivable.

ON CHARACTER OF A BUILDING

The depth of the light enhances our impressions; its effects are
both vivid and dazzling. all is radiant!
The effect of light and its powers on defining form ,shape, colour etc
are bought about by Boullee by describing seasons and nature in
poetic manner; making it hard for one to disagree.
The arrangement should be such that we can absorb at a glance the
multiplicity of the separate elements that constitute the whole.
The play of light on this arrangement of volumes should produce the
most widespread, striking and varied effects that are all multiplied to
the maximum.

in a large ensemble, the secondary components must be skilfully

combined to give the greatest possible opulence to the whole; and it
is the auspicious distribution of this opulence that produces splendour
and magnificence.

BOULLEES

LEGACY

12.He has been criticized as a megalomaniac, because of his tendency toward

grandiose proposals, but these should be regarded simply as visionary
schemes rather than as practical projects.
13.His focus on polarity (offsetting opposite design elements) and the use of light
and shadow was highly innovative, and continues to influence architects to
this day.
14. He was "rediscovered" in the 20th century and has influenced recent architects
such asAldo Rossi.

FYI
Aldo Rossi(3 May 1931 4 September 1997)
was an Italianarchitectanddesignerwho
accomplished the unusual feat of achieving
international recognition in four distinct areas:
theory, drawing, architecture and product
design.[1]
He was the first Italian to receive thePritzker
Prize for architecture.