Etienne Louis Boullée was commissioned to enlarge the Royal Library in 1780. Although his designs were never executed, his perspective drawing of the Royal Library forcefully affirms the ideals of the Enlightenment, the importance of regularity and the effect of illumination in grandiose projects. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Boullée's design for the reading room includes a vast barrel-vaulted ceiling. Boullée promoted surprising and original effects of light and shadow. In the library this is represented through an open portion of the ceiling, which allows daylight to penetrate the room, giving life and movement. Similarly, Boullée suggests a modernized way of organizing by staking book galleries on flat storefronts. In his treatise Boullée explains his intent, "immense basilica illuminated by a skylight at the top of the vault... human chain of people arranged on various levels distributed in such a way as to pass the books from hand to hand". Boullée promotes regularity, symmetry and variety in the reading room. He states that “…we find gentle volumes pleasant while angular and hard ones repel us”. Boullée demonstrated this by using the Greek and Roman orders to combine classical elements on a grand scale for sublime dramatic effect. Arguing that proportion alone does not constitute beauty in architecture but rather regularity, symmetry and variety together result in proportion. Boullée introduces the study of written words in the intermediate area of ​​the interior of his library. The group of men opened books and long scrolls around a small table. Under the ambient light that permeated the rest of the room, academic texts were held together within the balanced symmetry of a “simple volume” that invites reflection on their true origins in the geometry of nature. The Essai sur l'art which houses the Royal Library was completed shortly after the events of the French Revolution and its content certainly belongs to the Enlightenment ideals and politics of the time. In the utopian project of the reading rooms, Boullée attempts to combine the foundations of pure geometry, to create the foundations of an ideal city. These are large external and internal public spaces and monumental buildings that express a symbolic, artistic, political and ethical content. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay In the context of Boullée's drawings of pure architectural spaces and forms, it is established that perfect and regular geometric figures, such as the basilica of the Royal Library, create ideas of harmony, perfection and symmetry in the human mind, thus pushing the soul to broaden his intuitions and embrace the entire cosmos. Boullée's task was not only to research new forms but also and above all to discover their artistic effect. Boullée made it possible to see more deeply into what had once been, in hopes of helping others experience the “noble transportations” and “sublime thought” that would inspire the unknown journey that awaited them..