Charles-Edouard Jeanneret, well-knows as "Le Corbusier", was born in 1887 in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland. He chose to study in La Chaux-de-Fonds Art School because of his interest in visual art and was quickly interested in architecture.

He moved to Paris in 1917 and discovered the potential of a new material in Auguste Perret’s works : the concrete. His work focuses on modern and industrial society : "Thus architecture becomes the mirror of the world" (Towards an architecture, first published in 1923). His projects are very different from houses design to town planning and he strove to do his best to keep architecture close to the modern world and its needs.

Le Corbusier’s career began in 1915. He managed to work in collaboration with various people such as the engineer and musician Iannis Xenakis who helped him build La Tourette. In the 70's, several ongoing projects were left unfinished when he died in 1965 in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin (in the South of France).

Le Corbusier intended to create an architecture in harmony with people needs and belief. In La Tourette, he designed each place compatible with the daily life of the Community. His first drawings divided the convent in three areas : individual life, common life and spiritual life, which correspond to the different activities of the Community inside the convent (live, study and pray).

I am passionate about my job. I think you have been made a beautiful convent. I often regret not having a day to spend on a home visit. [...] Alas, my job requires me to be an inveterate traveler, a wandering Peter the Hermit. To conclude, let me say, quite seriously, I had a great joy undertaking La Tourette an visiting you and I thank you for the joy you have given me.

Le Corbusier’s letter of February 15, 1963 to Father Levesque