Leung Kit Man talks on Le Corbusier:Villa Savoye,France (1928-30)

information:
artist: Le Corbusier
title:  Villa Savoye
place: France
year: 1928-1930
medium: Concrete
style: International style

About the International style:


The international style has four slogans. They are 1.ornament is a crime 2.Truth to materials 3.form follows function 4."machines for living“ by Le Corbusier. First, the number one is about the decoration on architecture. Ornament is a crime means International style doesn’t want exaggerating decoration and just keep it simple. Number two, truth to materials, means any material should be used where it is most appropriate and its nature should not be hidden. For example, Concrete, should not be painted and the means of its construction should be celebrated. Number three, form follows function. The principle is that the shape of a building or object should be primarily based upon its intended function or purpose.  The last one, "machines for living“, this is the concept by Le Corbusier, the artist of villa savoye. It just means residences can be mass produced as machines. 


how the work fit into this four slogans of International style:

Let’s look into the work. And I try to fit the features of the work into those four slogans of international style. First, ornament is a crime, the example of the work is that’s exterior, front and back. You can see there are not any historical ornament.  The lines are straight, simple and slender without exaggerating decoration. The windows are also neat rectangle, and pillars are thin straight and neat too without decorative elements.

Second, Truth to materials, the example is living area of the house. Actually, not only the exterior but also the interior of the house is using pure color, white, the original and rough color of concrete. This is a color with associations of newness, simplicity, and health, this is an ideas
from the artist when he see the cathedrals were also white.

Third, form follows function, Functional roof, and serving as a garden and terrace, reclaiming for nature the land occupied by the building. The roof garden is build with both plantings and architectural shapes. This shows the close relationship between form and function.

"machines for living“, the example is the Modulor design of the whole architecture.
The Modulor is an anthropometric scale of proportions devised by the Le Corbusier. Modulor is an accurate system and it keeps the great proportion of design of architecture. It is just as accurate as machine so it can mass produce. And this is the concept “machines for living”. Modulor Design for mass production.

Questions:

1.Can you see this piece how to affect modern architecture? 
2.Can it really mass produce?

References:

Villa Savoye - Achine for living. Ultimate House. October 16, 2007. Retrieved on January 19, 2011.
 Pictures of the interior and exterior of the villa by the Boston College
http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/cas/fnart/Corbu.html

Henry Russell Hitchcock, Philip Johnson. The International Style. W. W. Norton & Company, 1997. ISBN 0-393-31518-5