modulor

Modulor is a scale system developed by the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier in the early 1940s as a means of bringing human proportions into architectural design. The system is rooted in the Golden Ratio and the human body's dimensions, and it is expressed through a specific series of measurements that correspond to a person's height, the height of a person with a child, and other related ratios. Le Corbusier believed that by applying these proportions to building elements such as floor heights, window sizes, and spatial layouts, architects could create structures that felt naturally harmonious to occupants.

The Modulor concept was first articulated in Le Corbusier’s book Le Man 404 (1945) and illustrated in his corbel diagrams, which position the number 1.618 (the Golden Ratio) as a pivot point for vertical and horizontal relationships. The system has been used in notable projects such as the Palais des Nations in Geneva, the United Nations headquarters in New York, and the Notre‑Dame du Haut‑Mont in Évry, where the Modulor grids guided the dimensions of windows, staircases, and interior spaces.

While originally intended for architecture, the Modulor has influenced other domains including interior design, product design, and even urban planning. Despite its popularity among modernist architects, the system remains a subject of debate, with some praising its timeless aesthetic logic and others critiquing it as an overly prescriptive approach that can constrain creative expression. Nonetheless, the Modulor continues to be studied as a historical example of how mathematical proportions can inform built environments.