Which features characterize Villa Savoye as an early modernist building?

• A. Heavy masonry walls and small windows.
• B. Traditional pitched roof and timber framing.
• C. Pilotis, free plan, ribbon windows, and roof garden.
• D. Splayed ornamentation and terracotta reliefs.

Answer: (C)

Villa Savoye shows early modernist design through Le Corbusier’s characteristic ideas put into a house form. The building rests on pilotis, which lift the mass off the ground and create a light, garden-connected base rather than a heavy foundation wall. Inside, a free plan results from the structural frame, allowing flexible, open spaces that aren’t constrained by load-bearing walls. Long ribbon windows run across the façade, flooding interiors with light and emphasizing a continuous horizontal line that reads as modern and machine-made. The roof is turned into a garden, reclaiming outdoor space on top of the structure and tying the home to nature. Together, these features embody the move toward functional form, transparency, and minimal ornament—distinct from traditional approaches. The other options reflect older or revival styles: heavy masonry with small windows, a traditional pitched roof with timber framing, or decorative ornamentation and terracotta reliefs.