Lequeu is now considered part of the period of “visionary architecture” which developed in the period leading up to the French Revolution. This was directly influenced by the great competitions organised by the École des Beaux-Arts. These competitions encouraged entries comprising massive buildings unfettered by budgetary constraints. This resulted in scores of designs for vast and impressive buildings which had little connection with the real world and remained “paper architecture”. Architects of this genre include Claude-Nicolas Ledoux, Étienne-Louis Boullée, and Antoine Vaudoyer; most of these, like Lequeu, are more famous for their unbuilt works than for buildings actually constructed.