Built and Unbuilt Temples by Étienne-Louis Boullée
By James Wehn
Wooded hills open to reveal a complex of bright white buildings that stretch across the plains of a broad valley. A domed shrine at the center of the compound stands above the other buildings. Its nobility is reiterated by a mountain rising majestically into the clouds, where upon the plateau, a temple sits between earth and sky, exposed to all the elements of nature.
At 140 x 40 centimeters (58.27 x 15.75 inches), this large ink and wash drawing is an architectural elevation for a Monument destiné aux hommages dus à l’Etre Suprême (Monument intended for tributes due to the Supreme Being) by French neo-classical architect, Étienne-Louis Boullée (1728 – 1799).