Le Corbusier’s proportional system based on the golden ratio and human dimensions is called the Modulor.
Developed during the 1940s, the Modulor was intended to connect architectural measurements with the proportions of the human body. Le Corbusier used a stylized male figure with a raised arm as its reference, then organized measurements into two related series derived from the golden ratio. The system also helped bridge the metric system and the feet-and-inches system used in English-speaking countries.
The Modulor continued earlier traditions associated with Vitruvius, Leon Battista Alberti, and Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. However, it was not simply another name for the Vitruvian Man: that figure was an earlier Renaissance study, while the Modulor was a modern architectural measuring system.
Le Corbusier published The Modulor in 1948 and followed it with Modulor 2 in 1955. He applied the system to projects including the Unité d’Habitation in Marseille, where it influenced dimensions in the apartments, structure, and furnishings.