Have you ever visited the Indian city of Chandigarh? The master plan for the modernist metropolis was commissioned in 1951 by the former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who tapped the skills of Swiss-French architect for the purpose. Chandigarh was intended as the new shared capital of Punjab and Haryana, and served a key symbol of India’s newfound independence. Of course, with Le Corbusier as its principal designer, the city features light, space, greenery and concrete galore. It also features this striking monument, Open Hand, the administration’s official emblem of peace and reconciliation — photographed here by image-maker Katsunori Watanabe in 2004.
