Description
An exceptional time capsule in the Clarté building in Geneva
This duplex is located within the famous Clarté building, also known as the ‘Glass House,’ an iconic complex designed by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret in 1932. It was listed as a historic monument in 1986 and inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2016.
Preserved in its original state, it stands as an exceptional testament to the interior design of the apartments created by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret.
Designed with an ascending logic, the apartment spans an area of 277 m².
The lower level includes an entrance hall, a “smoking room” that can accommodate a bedroom or office, as well as a bright double-height living room illuminated by a spectacular façade combining armored glass and clear glass, opening onto a 13 m² running balcony. A traversing dining room, kitchen, and pantry are also accessible from the entrance.
A functionalist staircase with a tubular metal handrail leads to the landing of the upper level, which distributes three bedrooms, including a master suite with a bathroom, an office converted into a mezzanine above the living room, numerous storage spaces, and two additional bedrooms, one with a shower room. One of the bedrooms and the master suite also have access to a 13 m² running balcony.
A 14 m² cellar completes the property.
This apartment has preserved all of its original fixtures, fittings, and décor, with the exception of the kitchen tiles. It has not undergone any renovation or structural modification.
The Clarté is located in the Eaux-Vives district, right in the heart of downtown Geneva.
It offers all the nearby amenities.
© F.L.C. / Adagp, 2025
Une modern work
“This building is a milestone, a landmark of modern architecture in a backward-looking environment.” (October 30, 1932). It is in these terms that Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret present, for the editions of L’Art en Suisse, the Clarté rental building, built in Geneva in 1932.
After several aborted architectural projects, Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret were entrusted by entrepreneur and locksmith Edmond Wanner with the construction of a building in the area known as the Villereuse Triangle in Geneva. An example of constructive rationalization, all the elements of Clarté are prefabricated in series; from the tilting “Eclair” doors manufactured by Edmond Wanner’s factory to the “Nevada” glass blocks from the Saint-Gobain company, the construction site mobilized several industries with a focus on efficiency.
Le Corbusier implements some of his five points defined in his work Towards an Architecture (1923): the rooftop terrace, the free plan and façade, and the ribbon windows.
© F.L.C. / Adagp, 2025
A manifesto of innovative housing
The Clarté building is part of the ongoing research by Le Corbusier and Jeanneret on new forms of housing. Intended for an affluent social class, the building contains 48 apartments with various layouts, ranging from studios to large nine-room duplexes, including the one proposed here, which requires an original organizational approach. This is reflected in the abandonment of the uniform division into floors, with the 2.60-meter reference unit being broken by double-height spaces. The facades and interior walls, freed from any load-bearing function thanks to the 280 reinforced concrete columns, allow great freedom in the layout of the apartments.
Views of the Clarté, 1932 © F.L.C. / Adagp, 2025
A large-scale restoration project
Despite several threats of demolition (in 1968 and the 1980s), the building was listed as a historic monument on November 12, 1986, and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2016.
Swiss architect Pascal Häusermann, famous for his visionary ideas and organic architecture (bubble houses), played a key role in its renovation. After his first intervention in the building (1953-1954), he worked with Bruno Camoletti between 1975 and 1977 on a large-scale restoration. The architects carried out some technical renovations; they replaced the glass blocks in the stairwells with square glass slabs and divided the attic “wagon” into two apartments.
A major renovation (common areas, facades, metal structures) took place from 2007 to 2010 and led to the UNESCO listing in 2016.
Technical information
5 700,000 CHF
Fees paid by the seller
Co-ownership.
Property Tax: N/A
Heating: gas
Intercom
Security code
© F.L.C. / Adagp, 2025
DPE : NC
