Pralin

The same minimalism of the exterior is echoed on the interior of the villa. Industrial railings flank the ramp and stairs that rise through the structure, leading to the rooftop garden. The architectural promenade in the Villa Savoye was an essential idea in Le Corbusier's residential designs, the first signs of which can be seen in his 1922 design for Ozenfant's studio in Paris. Visitors approach the Villa Savoye from the driveway, which circles around the back of the house and delivers the visitor to the front door. Upon entering the house a person can choose to either ascend the flight of stairs to the upper level or walk up the ramp located at the center of the house. The ramp transverses interior and exterior spaces, terminating at the rooftop garden. The architectural promenade allows the visitor to fluidly and continuously experience the entire volume of the house by moving uninterrupted through the entire space - room to room, interior to exterior - rather than experiencing a series of individual moments and spaces. In many of his villa designs, including the Villa Savoye, the architectural promenade begins at the ground floor and continues until it reaches the rooftop garden or library, and is meant to elevate a person both physically and mentally to a place of meditation and reflection.