Moi aussi, je regarde

Ingel Vaikla consistently explores modernist architecture in her films. In an earlier work, she portrayed Tallinn’s City Hall (Linnahall) and its guard, Peeter. Over the last two years, she has made multiple visits to Marseille, filming Le Corbusier’s Unité d’Habitation. Completed in 1952, this 18-story concrete structure accommodates 1,600 residents and includes shops, a library, a cinema, a kindergarten, a spacious rooftop terrace and other public spaces.

Dubbed a “City within a City,” this building offered inspiration for similar structures across war-torn Europe, addressing a dire housing crisis. This influence is evident in the local concrete micro-districts, which integrate essential components like residential buildings, schools and other necessary functions. Le Corbusier viewed houses as “machines for living in,” and the Unité d’Habitation’s exterior has often been compared to an ocean liner. Yet, this resemblance remains unseen in Vaikla’s film, as no shots of the building’s iconic facade are included.

In visual representation, recognising whose gaze is captured is crucial. In Western art history, this gaze has typically been that of white men, with Le Corbusier’s Modulor standard based on a 1.83-metre-tall man. Vaikla subtly, yet powerfully, reverses this in her film. Rather than tall men, we hear the voices of older female residents and see young girls inhabiting the building’s interior and exterior spaces. The film opens with a sweeping view of Marseille from the Unité d’Habitation rooftop, inviting viewers to experience the city as if through the building’s own eyes.