Etienne-Louis Boulet (1728-1799) is a French architect, one of the brightest representatives of megalomaniacs, who created many amazing projects that were never implemented. The constructions of megalomaniacs impress with their monumentality and geometric accuracy. These ideas are grandiose and unusual, and although they remained only on paper, much later, already in the 20th century, they inspired modernists and avant-garde artists.
Bulle was born in Paris, was a member of the Royal Academy of Architecture, and later adopted as chief architect under Frederick the Great. Several of his buildings in Paris survive to the modern era: the Hôtel de Brunoy was demolished in 1930, and the Hôtel Alexandre still stands today. In the 70s–80s. In the 18th century, Bulle taught at the National School of Bridges and Roads, and it was during this period that he formed and theoretically substantiated his style. He was inspired by classical forms, believed that excessive decoration was not needed, instead adding countless huge columns and sticking to symmetry. An important element is lighting: Bulle used light as a symbol of enlightenment, and darkness as a symbol of ignorance.
Among the most ambitious projects is the cenotaph in honor of the English scientist Isaac Newton. Cenotaphs are tombstones built far from the burial place of the people to whom they are dedicated. This monument was supposed to be made in the form of a giant ball surrounded by cypresses, the height of the entire building would be 150 meters. Bulle believed that the sphere is the most beautiful and perfect natural body in his "theory of bodies", it was ideally suited for a cenotaph.
Due to Bulle's predilection for gigantism, he was credited with megalomania. In the 20th century, Italian architect Aldo Rossi attracted attention to the work of the megalomaniac. References to Bulle's work abound in Peter Greenaway's film Belly of an Architect (1987).
