Piloti!

If ‘buildings are machines’ where people can live, then ‘Pilotis’ will be its bearings that elevate them.

Figure 1Pilotis!©Someone has built it before

Key Architects: Le-Corbusier, Zeev Rechter, Patrick Gwynne, and Paul Rudolph

• Columns or piers or pilotis, whatever you want to call them, are the architectural element produced of steel, iron, or reinforced concrete, backed buildings above ground or water.
• The earliest pilotis, made of wood, are also known as stilts or stumps. Fishermen’s huts in parts of Scandinavia and Asia are made of timber pilotis, and built over water can be considered the ancientest example.

Figure 2Fishermen’s hut and pilotis.©depositphotos

• Environmentally.

They specifically get used for flood-prone parts of the world and where we have uneven surrounding landscapes.

• Aesthetically.

With the grid formation raising the building evenly, the element leaves space for driveways or parking, lightening the appearance of the building.

Contributions by Architects:

Le-Corbusier: Dom-ino Houses(1914), Unite d’Habitation, Marseilles(1947–52), and Villa Savoye.

Figure 3Domi-no houses©AA Member & Alumni Events

Patrick Gwynne: Homewood, Surrey, UK(1938–39).

Figure 4Homewood, UK©Nicholas Burger Estates