The restoration of E1027 by Eileen Gray – in pictures

Eileen Gray's restored E1027 house at Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. "Its long-drawn-out restoration is provoking accusations of botching and disrespecting Gray’s work," writes Rowan Moore. Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

View from above. "Delicate, white and ship-like, E1027 is perched above a bay on the Cote d’Azur whose wildness was, when it was finished in 1929, the opposite of the worldly charms of nearby Monte Carlo." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

An archive shot of E1027. "The bisexual Gray designed it with input from her then lover Jean Badovici... the E is for Eileen, the 10 and the 2 for the 10th and second letters of the alphabet, J and B, and the 7 is for G." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

"Other modernists treated their houses as statements into which chairs and tables (also manifestos of design intent) might be inserted. Gray was lighter, more playful, subtly and carefully attuned to the sun and wind." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

"Since 2000, Gray’s house has been the responsibility of the commune of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin and it has proved a burdensome responsibility for this small authority... €600,000 and several years later the restoration is incomplete, and its permanent opening date uncertain." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

The entrance to E1027. "In 1938 and 1939, Le Corbusier stayed there as a guest of Badovici, who had by then parted from Gray, and painted murals, crude and garish, on its walls. Le Corbusier’s paintings still dominate the interior today." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

"Architectural writer Michael Webb has described E1027's current state as 'tragic'... British architect John Allan, who is experienced in restoring modernist buildings, found 'disturbing evidence of a project that was poorly conceived and inadequately executed'." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027

The living room. "It is not all doom and gloom. Thanks to the efforts of the commune, E1027 is at least in a better state than it was in the late 90s, when it was close to disintegration... There is talk that the whole site might be sorted out and made suitable for visiting by 2015." Photograph: Courtesy of Friends of e.1027