If I could be anybody famous...

...I could do far worse than Le Corbusier. Seen here is a detail from his massive and fascinating High Court building, built as part of a commission to implement a design (not his, but still) for an urban core for India's first planned city, Chandigarh, established in 1947 by Prime Minister Nehru as the new capital of the contentious state of Punjab. I would love to have an entire city to construct, though my imagination would give out after deciding where to ideally place the coffee shops. In all seriousness, though, there is a peerless power and prestige that goes into accomplishing what Le Corbusier did with Chandigarh -- more than leaving an indelible mark, he articulates through his designs much of the urban experience of a city of 1 million people from beyond the grave.

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