ABSTRACT
An experienced designer knows that the design and construction of architecture rarely goes according to plan. Unexpected discoveries can permeate the design process producing surprising results. But this unpredictability can be anticipated. For the Swiss architect Le Corbusier, fortunate coincidences were an essential source of inspiration in his own design work. Unforeseen encounters with new architectural ideas are common in architectural practice. Taking a cue from Umberto Eco, who once observed how “every story tells a story that has already been told,” this chapter explores the mutability between the everyday and the extraordinary as a common thread in these tales of sudden architectural inspiration. Perhaps the most vivid account for the serendipitous discovery of an architectural idea is Vitruvius’ story of the Corinthian column capital.
