of the hill. This floor, open to the landscape, is sheltered and
shaded by the floor above. It is an arrangement reminiscent
of that suggested by Le Corbusier in ‘Five Points Towards a
New Architecture’ (1926). Le Corbusier argued that buildings
did not need to take up ground space; by the use of columns
(‘pilotis’) ground and space could be allowed to flow continuously
under them (4). He argued for roof gardens too.
Koolhaas does not provide a roof garden on the Maison
à Bordeaux. The uppermost floor contains bedrooms. In
comparison with the medieval castle, this is the level with the
thick (concrete) walls and the small windows (‘loopholes’).
As will be seen in the plans on the following pages, this floor
is divided into two, with half for the children’s rooms and
half for the parents’. The moving platform gives access to the
parents’ half while the children’s half is reached by the spiral
stair contained in its cylindrical drum. The two halves are
separated by a slot – a divide between the generations. The
parents’ rooms have a veranda facing the morning sun.