A summary of Mathematics of the ideal villa

Mathematics of the ideal villa is a paper written by Colin Rowe , an architectural historian, critic, and theoretician, and was first published in the Architectural Review, 1974.

A comparison between Villa Garche and Villa Malcontenta according to the following points : 1) date :
Villa Malcontenta :16th century, Villa Garche 1920's.

2) Geometry:
Both villas are designed as a cube, same dimension : 8 X 5.5 X5 unit. Same ratio on the exterior 2:1:2:1:2

3) Structure:
Villa Garche : column- supported structure. Villa Malcontenta : Bearing wall structure.

4) Plan:
Villa Garche : open plan, the use of piano nobile to exemplify that the house had become a palace. Different arrangement of spaces on each floor: the function and distribution of the rooms follows an a elementary program: entrance and large hall, secondary entrance, garage , and a living room with a library. On the second floor there are 2 bedrooms with sitting rooms and bathrooms. On the third 2 guest rooms with bathrooms and servant rooms. Villa Malcontenta: Centralized traditional plan. All floors are the same

5) facades:
Villa Garche facades are expressed as a series of horizontal strips. Villa Malcontenta: the facades have 3 horizontal divisions: base- piano nobile and attic.

6) roof treatment:
Villa Garche: flat surface with a sculptural feature (elliptical tower) Villa Malcontenta: Pediment and pyramidal elements

How far did Le Curbosier achieve his "five points of architecture" ?

Le curbosier exemplification of the 5 points on villa Grache : 1) The open plan: since there are no bearing walls, the distributions of the spaces are different on each floor. 2) Free faade: the faade is expressed as a 3,4, of horizontal strips. 3) Roof garden: a roof terrace with elliptical water tank. 4) Ribbon window 5) column-support structure, the structure is isolated from the other components of the buildings. ________________________________________________________________ Piano nobile: the main floor of a renaissance building, elegantly decorated, with grand exterior stair case.

References: Mathematics of the ideal Villa. Colin Rowe, 1947. Le Curbosier "regulating lines" for the villa at Garches and other early architectural works. Roger Herz-Fischler. http://www.britannica.com