Corbusier #6
Paris, France
2013
In addition to a stairway to the second level, Corbusier also added a ramp up from the main living area. Its sweeping curve adds a nice touch to the space but I don’t think it would qualify the house for ADA access as it has quite a steep pitch. I’m not sure which would be worse to attempt in a wheelchair, going up or coming down.]]>
Corbusier #6
Paris, France
2013
Your photo got me thinking about the positioning of the light to cast the shadow of a kind of parallax toward the top of the stair sweep. Wonder what the effect would be if the stairs had “house lights” like in a theatre, in the stairwell itself, casting light out onto the wall? I suspect the left side of the shot would still be black, and the house lights usually don’t put out tremendous lumens but I have to think it would change the outcome maybe highlighting some of the stairs…
Steve, if I remember right (to lazy to go back and confirm), some of the detail in the stairs was visible in the original image. I could have brought that out more, but instead chose to actually make it darker to turn that whole area nearly black. The goal was to try and enhance the view of the scene as a purely abstract set of shapes rather than a collection of tangible objects. Of course the railing on the landing brings the image back away from the purely abstract but I thought that was just enough touch of “reality” to keep the viewer interested. (My theory is that an image will hold a viewer’s attention longer if there is at least something in it to anchor them to the familiar. Otherwise they just feel uncomfortable, confused, or bored and move on. It’s hard even for myself who enjoys the activity to try and think solely in terms of shape, color, tone, and texture.)