VILLA SABOYE VS ROBIE HOUSE: stereomic vs tectonic

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2017 VILLA SABOYE VS ROBIE HOUSE: stereomic vs tectonic tomás sánchez olivares

Both of the images seem to start on a horizontal direction with its lines looking to stretch to the vantage points. The way in which each one achieves it is where the main difference come to attention.

two images, although it wouldn’t appear so- all the accumulation of more massive volumes still converge on a horizontal intention broken in this case by the verticality of the chimney that rises with the trees.

For the Villa Savoye, we can start describing the building from the ground up. It is placed on an isolated space, with few things other than nature and void happen. It is set on a flat green surface where eventually a grey patch of hard surface appears. From it, vertical elements emerge and close up the space; deeper into the building we begin to sense the first heavy volume placed on the ground, but its colour makes it less obvious. In the next order, we find a second volume, the most important one as it is this which stretches through the horizon, interrupted only by a series of transparent frames – some are reflecting the sky through the use of glass, others are only openings - which in turn reinforce the horizontal perspective. Finally, the top of the space starts to stretch towards the sky in the same way the trees and the background rise.

They both seem to be building in which the the inside is meant for the inhabitant, but in the end the long windows might suggest that it tries to make the interior proud of where it stands, it wants to show the horizontal landscape of the outside. From the outside, they try to address the importance of this sense of pride of its connection to the ground in different ways. One is rising from the ground as if trying to be gentle and respectful and through this it welcomes more light and tries to control it. The other is trying to imitate the ground, being heavy, emerging from it. This time, the light is not less welcomed, but it is controlled by making it scarce.

We now turn to Lloyd Wright’s architecture, and immediately the first difference is the change in material, which almost went almost unnoticed in Le Corbusier’s building. A much heavier sensation, and a stronger influence of the shadows and dark spaces. Unlike the previous image, this one is placed on a space where there are more things happening; there seems to be a sidewalk, trees rising vertically in front of the building, and an architectural background all suggest a more urban setting. This one is also set on a green surface where eventually a grey patch of hard surface appears, but from here, we encounter a greater number of horizontal levels of volumes. From the fist line of grey and cold stone base, to the massive brick walls finished with another stone line, the now dark series of windows, and the long and floating blacki-ish roofs – which are to be the lightest volumes of the


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