"... The regulaing line is a satisfaction of a spiritual order which leads to the pursuit of ingenious and harmonious relations. It confers on the work the quality of rhythm. ...The choice of a regualting line fixes the fundamental geometry of the work; it fixes therefore one of the 'fundamental characters.'..." L.C. [8]
regulating lines As you approach the house from the driveway the complexity of the facade becomes clear. The villa appears only with two facades, the street and the garden facade. Rectangles of different sizes set up a rhythm across the wall, held in balance with the simple outline of the building. Two strip of windows run from one side to the other. At the top the facade is punctured by an opening, suggesting the roof garden behind. The lowest level has a variety of openings cut into it, including the service entrance under the tiny balcony and main entrance surmounted by a canopy. The garden facade is broken up by a terrace set back into the closed box. Curved forms introduce a counterpoint to the strict geometry.
Le Corbusier emphasized to arrange the formal elements of the two facades in the rhythmic 2:1:2:1:2 pattern of the pilotis and with the help of the 'tracés régulateurs' - the regulating lines. The subtle coordination of the pattern and the regulating lines shows a detail at the garden facade. The inclination of the reling of the stair to the garden had to have exactly the same inclination like the major diagonal line and the beginning of the reling had to be in line with the pattern. To ensure this condition Le Corbusier heightened the base of the stair.