ARCH162

           A phalanstere was a design created in the nineteenth century by Charles Fourier, through the inspiration he found from the palace of Versilles. In eighteen thirty-two the newspaper, Fourierist, proposed the launch of a fundraiser to create La Phalange.   He envisioned the structure as a U-shaped building with wings on either side of the large structure. This was meant to become a self-contained utopian building that would house 500-2000 people who would work together and benefit each other perfectly.  Fourier was a French socialist who wanted to develop an architectural system based off of principles of sexual liberation, co-operative organization, women’s liberation, and human interaction. He was not a fan of industrialization or the free market at the time, since he believed they led to the destruction of the modern world through the oppression of its people. He believed that in his society everyone would work equally fo...

Thomas Jefferson’s plan for an Academical Village, at the University of Virginia, was his concept of the utopian institution. Jefferson argued that large buildings became ugly and cumbersome, smaller more individual buildings were the most efficient for a small, growing university. Buildings on a large scale were prone to extensive damage in fires, and unhealthy in cases of illness. Smaller buildings could also be added over time, so the original expense to the university is much smaller. He believed that also, smaller buildings could begin to take on individual characteristics which reflect the subjects studied within them. Jean-Baptiste Le Roy, assisted by scientists Pierre-Samuel Du Pont de Nemours and the Marquis de Condorcet designed the replanning of Paris’ main hospital, Hotel Dieu. As friends of Jefferson’s it can be said that this design, comprising of 12  structures and a main Church, had an impact on his design for the Academia Village.The influence behind Jefferson’s A...