The Mathematics of the Ideal Villa and Other Essays

Colin Rowe

The MIT Press Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, England

Copyright 0 1 976 by

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, elec- tronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and re- trieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

This book was set in I BM Composer Theme by Techdata Associates, Inc. and printed and bound by The Murray Printing Company in the United States of America,

Second printing, 1977 Third printing, 1978

P

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Rowe, Colin. The mathematics of the ideal villa and other essays.

Includes bibliographical references. CONTENTS: The mathematics of the ideal villa.-Mannerism and modern architecture.-

Character and composition.-Chicago frame. [etc.] I . Architecture, Domestic-Addresses, essays, lectures. I. Title.

NA7110.R68 720'.8 75-33908 ISBN 0-262-1 8077-4

Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments

The Mathematics o f the Ideal Villa

Mannerism and Modern

Architecture

Character and Com posit or Some Vicissitudes o f

Architectural Vocabular in the Nineteenth Centu

Neo-'Classicism' and

odern Architecture I

eo-'Classicism ' and

odern Architecture I I

nsparency : Literal