Villa Savoye Classics

Le Corbusier is famous for stating, “The house is a machine for living.”  This statement is not simply translated into the design of a human scaled assembly line; rather the design begins to take on innovative qualities and advances found in other fields of industry, in the name of efficiency.

In response to his aspirations and admiration of mechanized design, Le Corbusier established “The Five Points” of architecture, which is simply a list of prescribed elements to be incorporated in design.  The Five Points of architecture can be thought of as Le Corbusier’s modern interpretation of Vitruvius’ Ten Books on Architecture, not literally in the sense of an instructional manual for architects, but rather a checklist of necessary components of design.  So much so that Villa Savoye is thoroughly tailored to Corbusier’s Five Points.

The Five Points of Architecture:

Pilotis  [slender columns]
Flat Roof Terrace
Open Plan
Ribbon Windows
Free Façade  [free of structural members]

Villa Savoye is a house designed based on the architectural promenade. Its experience is in the movement through the spaces.  It is not until one becomes familiar with the subtle peculiarities that the movement and proportionality of the spaces evokes a sense of monumentality within the Parisian suburb.