Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Counterpoint: Machine


For the last of my 4 8.5" x 8.5" squares for my history and Theory of design class I chose to use the smallest scale: artifact, and to represent this artifact in the the form of a paragraph. I chose to right a bout the stair case in Villa Savoye in France. my paragraph on the subject is as follows:
Le Corbusier, as an architect of the International Modernist style, saw the home as "a machine for living." It was within this frame of thought that he utilized the airplane, steamship, and automobile as a way of expressing the form discovered in response to modern function. It was for this reason, I think, that the Villa Savoye resembles a strange cross between a private residence and a parking garage. Deriving his inspiration from the automobile, Le Corbusier wanted the inhabitants to "drive" through the space, winding back and forth always looking to discover what is around the bend. Because of the open plan, this winding experience and sense of discovery is mainly provided by the helical curved staircase and the ramp that doubles back through the center of the house. This smooth, spiraling transition and the idea of switchbacks between floors is what reminds me the most of driving through a parking deck, on the hunt for that elusive, perfect space.

Roth, pages 528-535
http://www. bluffton.edu/homepages/facstaff/sullivanm/france/poissy/savoye/corbu4.html

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