How did World War II affect Le Corbusier’s architectural work?

World War II significantly altered Le Corbusier’s career by halting his active practice as a builder and traveler, as well as ending his 20-year professional association with Pierre Jeanneret, who joined the French Resistance. During the German occupation of France, Le Corbusier was unable to pursue major construction projects and instead focused his time on painting, writing, and reflection.1

This period of forced inactivity proved intellectually productive. Le Corbusier developed the foundational concepts for the "Modulor," a system of harmonic proportions based on human stature that he would later apply to all his subsequent buildings to ensure they incorporated a "human scale".1

By the end of the war, his public image had shifted; despite the lack of new buildings, he had become a symbol of modernity for students and was widely regarded as the "Pablo Picasso" of architecture. This reputation set the stage for his post-war efforts to apply his urban planning theories to the reconstruction of France, eventually leading to the realization of his vision for social environments in projects like the Unité d’Habitation in Marseille.12