FAMOUS ARCHITECT DICTUMS

“OUR ARCHITECTURE REFLECTS TRULY AS A MIRROR.”

-LOUIS HENRI SULLIVAN

"THE ARCHITECT WHO COMBINES IN HIS BEING THE POWERS

OF VISION, OF IMAGINATION, OF INTELLECT, OF SYMPATHY
WITH HUMAN NEED AND THE POWER TO INTERPRET THEM IN A
LANGUAGE VERNACULAR AND TIME--- IS HE WHO SHALL
CREATE POEMS IN STONE."
-LOUIS HENRI SULLIVAN

“FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION”

-LOUIS HENRI SULLIVAN

"FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION- THAT HAS BEEN

MISUNDERSTOOD. FORM AND FUNCTION SHOULD BE ONE,
JOINED IN A SPIRITUAL UNION"
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“ARCHITECTURE IS ORGANIC”
- FRANK LLYOD WRIGHT

“THE THING ALWAYS HAPPENS THAT YOU REALLY BELIEVE IN;

AND THE BELIEF IN A THING MAKES IT HAPPEN.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“A DOCTOR CAN BURY HIS MISTAKES BUT AN ARCHITECT CAN

ONLY ADVISE HIS CLIENT TO PLANT VINES.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“THE GOOD BUILDING IS NOT ONE THAT HURTS THE

LANDSCAPE, BUT ONE WHICH MAKES THE LANDSCAPE MORE
BEAUTIFUL THAN IT WAS BEFORE THE BUILDING WAS BUILT.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

"ARCHITECTURE IS THE TRIUMPH OF HUMAN IMAGINATION

OVER MATERIALS, METHODS, AND MEN, TO PUT MAN INTO
POSSESSION OF HIS OWN EARTH"
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“AN ARCHITECT’S MOST USEFUL TOOLS ARE AN ERASER AT

THE DRAFTING BOARD AND A WRECKING BAR AT THE SITE.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

"EVERY GREAT ARCHITECT IS- NECESSARILY - A GREAT POET.

HE MUST BE A GREAT ORIGINAL INTERPRETER OF HIS TIME,
HIS DAY, HIS AGE"
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“ALL FINE ARCHITECTURAL VALUES ARE HUMAN VALES, ELSE

NOT VALUABLE.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT
“I KNOW THE PRICE OF SUCCESS: DEDICATION, HARD WORK
AND AN UNREMITTING DEVOTION TO THE THINGS YOU WANT
TO SEE HAPPEN.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

“WE ARE CALLED TO BE ARCHITECTS OF THE FUTURE, NOT

IT’S VICTIMS.”
-RICHARD BUCKMINSTER FULLER

“DOING MORE WITH LESS.”

-RICHARD BUCKMINSTER FULLER

"WHEN I AM WORKING ON A PROBLEM, I NEVER THINK ABOUT

BEAUTY... BUT WHEN I HAVE FINISHED, IF THE SOLUTION IS
NOT BEAUTIFUL, I KNOW IT IS WRONG"
-BUCKMINSTER FULLER

"MAKE BIG PLANS; AIM HIGH IN HOPE AND WORK,

REMEMBERING THAT A NOBLE, LOGICAL DIAGRAM ONCE
RECORDED WILL NOT DIE"
-DANIEL BURNHAM

"MAKE NO LITTLE PLANS; THEY HAVE NO MAGIC TO STIR MEN'S

BLOOD"
-DANIEL BURNHAM

“FORM DOES NOT NECESSARILY FOLLOW FUNCTION”

-ANTONIO GAUDI

“THOSE WHO LOOK FOR THE LAWS OF NATURE AS A SUPPORT

FOR THEIR NEW WORKS COLLABORATE WITH THE CREATOR.”
-ANONIO GAUDI

"ARCHITECTURE IS THE REACHING OUT FOR THE TRUTH"

-LOUIS KAHN

“A HOUSE IS A HOUSE”
- LOUIS KAHN

“A BRIDGE IS LIKE A HOUSE”

- ROBERT MAILLART

“FUNCTION INFLUENCE BUT DOES NOT DICTATE FORM”

- EERO SAARINEN

“ARCHITECTURAL-FORM EQUALS SOCIAL-FORM”

-ELIEL SAARINEN

"ALL ARCHITECTS WANT TO LIVE BEYOND THEIR DEATHS"

-PHILIP JOHNSON

“GOD IS IN THE DETAILS”

-LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE

“ARCHITECTURE STARTS WHEN YOU CAREFULLY PUT TWO

BRICKS TOGETHER. THERE IT BEGINS.”
-LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE
"ARCHITECTURE IS THE WILL OF AN EPOCH TRANSLATED INTO
SPACE"
-LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE

"ARCHITECTURE STARTS WHEN YOU CAREFULLY PUT TWO

BRICKS TOGETHER. THERE IT BEGINS"
-LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE

“LESS IS MORE.”
-LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE

"LESS IS A BORE"
-ROBERT VENTURI

“MORE IS MORE.”
-ROBERT VENTURI

“FORMS ACCOMMODATES FUNCTION’

-ROBERT VENTURI

"TAKE CARE OF THE LUXURIES

AND THE NECESSITIES WILL TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES"
-LE CORBUSIER

"I PREFER DRAWING TO TALKING. DRAWING IS FASTER,

AND LEAVES LESS ROOM FOR LIES"
-LE CORBUSIER

"SPACE AND LIGHT AND ORDER. THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT
MEN NEED JUST AS MUCH AS THEY NEED BREAD OR A PLACE
TO SLEEP"
-LE CORBUSIER

"THE HOME SHOULD BE THE TREASURE CHEST OF LIVING"

LE CORBUSIER

"ARCHITECTURE IS THE LEARNED GAME, CORRECT AND

MAGNIFICANT, OF FORMS ASSEMBLED IN THE LIGHT"
-LE CORBUSIER

“CUBE WITHIN A CUBE”

- LE CORBUSIER

"THE HOUSE IS A MACHINE FOR LIVING IN"

- LE CORBUSIER

“ARCHITECTURE IS THE LEARNED GAME, CORRECT AND

MAGNIFICENT, OF FORMS ASSEMBLED IN THE LIGHT.”
-LE CORBUSIER

“TO CREATE ARCHITECTURE IS TO PUT IN ORDER. PUT WHAT

IN ORDER, FUNCTION AND OBJECTS.”
-LE CORBUSIER
“IT’S VERY ATMOSPHERIC. IT’S NOT A BUILDING THAT IS A
SEVERE STATEMENT IN THE SKYLINE. WE NEED THE HEIGHT;
OTHERWISE, THE BUILDING ALMOST DISAPPEARS BECAUSE IT
IS SO SLENDER.”
-SANTIAGO CALATRAVA

“ART AND ARCHITECTURE, THE NEW UNITY”

- WALTER GROPIUS

“ARCHITECTURE BEGINS WHERE ENGINEERING ENDS.”

-WALTER GROPIUS

“A MODERN, HARMONIC AND LIVELY ARCHITECTURE IS THE

VISIBLE SIGN OF AN AUTHENTIC DEMOCRACY.”
-WALTER GROPIUS

“A MODERN, HARMONIC AND LIVELY ARCHITECTURE IS THE

VISIBLE SIGN OF AN AUTHENTIC DEMOCRACY.”
-WALTER GROPIUS

“A HARMONIOUS DESIGN REQUIRES THAT NOTHING BE ADDED

OR TAKEN AWAY.
MARCUS VITRUVIUS POLLIO

“ARCHITECTURE IS A SCIENCE ARISING OUT OF MANY OTHER

SCIENCES, AND ADORNED WITH MUCH AND VARIED LEARNING;
BY THE HELP OF WHICH A JUDGMENT IS FORMED OF THOSE
WORKS WHICH ARE THE RESULT OF OTHER ARTS.”
- MARCUS VITRUVIUS POLLIO

STRENGTH, BEAUTY, AND UNITY”

-MARCUS VITRUVIUS POLLIO

“Architecture must meet 3 requirements: strength, beauty, and unity.”

-POCIO, MARCUS VITRUVIUS

“ALL ARCHITECTURE IS SHELTER, ALL GREAT ARCHITECTURE

IS THE DESIGN OF SPACE THAT CONTAINS, CUDDLES, EXALTS,
OR STIMULATES THE PERSONS IN THAT SPACE.”
-PHILIP JOHNSON

“ARCHITECTURE IS THE ART OF HOW TO WASTE SPACE.”

-PHILIP JOHNSON

“ALL ARCHITECTS WANT TO LIVE BEYOND THEIR DEATHS.”

-PHILIP JOHNSON

“ARCHITECTS TODAY TEND TO DEPRECIATE THEMSELVES, TO

REGARD THEMSELVES AS NO MORE THAN JUST ORDINARY
CITIZENS WITHOUT THE POWER TO REFORM THE FUTURE.”
-KENZO TANGE

“MODERN ARCHITECTURE NEED NOT TO BE WESTERN”

- KENZO TANGE
“THE CITY MUST BE SUBJECT TO GROWTH, DECAY AND
RENEWAL”
-KENZO TANGE

“I BELIEVE THAT THE WAY PEOPLE LIVE CAN BE DIRECTED A

LITTLE BY ARCHITECTURE.”
-TADAO ANDO

“I WOULD LIKE MY ARCHITECTURE TO INSPIRE PEOPLE TO

USE THEIR OWN RESOURCES, TO MOVE INTO THE FUTURE.”
-TADAO ANDO

“I HOPE THAT AMERICA AS A WHOLE, AND ESPECIALLY ITS

ARCHITECTS, WILL BECOME MORE SERIOUSLY INVOLVED IN
PRODUCING A NEW ARCHITECTURAL CULTURE THAT WOULD
BRING THE NATION TO THE APEX – WHERE IT HAS STOOD
BEFORE – AND LEAD THE WORLD.”
-TADAO ANDO

“THAT ABSTRACT FORMS, DERIVED FROM TECHNOLOGY AND

FUNCTION, CAN BE USED SENSITIVELY IN EVERYDAY
COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS, LARGE URBAN SCHEMES, AND
MONUMENTS.”
-IOH MING PEI

"IT IS NOT AN INDIVIDUAL ACT, ARCHITECTURE. YOU HAVE TO

CONSIDER YOUR CLIENT. ONLY OUT OF THAT CAN YOU
PRODUCE GREAT ARCHITECTURE. YOU CANNOT WORK IN THE
ABSTRACT"
-IOH MING PEI

“AN IMPORTANT WORK OF ARCHITECTURE WILL CREATE

POLEMICS.”
-RICHARD MEIER

“MY PASSION AND GREAT ENJOYMENT FOR ARCHITECTURE,

AND THE REASON THE OLDER I GET THE MORE I ENJOY IT, IS
BECAUSE I BELIEVE WE – ARCHITECTS – CAN EFFECT THE
QUALITY OF LIFE OF THE PEOPLE.”
-RICHARD ROGERS

“I THINK MY BEST SKILL AS AN ARCHITECT IS THE

ACHIEVEMENT OF HAND-TO-EYE COORDINATION. I AM ABLE TO
TRANSFER A SKETCH INTO A MODEL INTO THE BUILDING.”
-FRANK GEHRY

“ARCHITECTURE SHOULD SPEAK OF ITS TIME AND PLACE, BUT

YEARN FOR TIMELESSNESS.”
-FRANK GEHRY

“IN ANY ARCHITECTURE, THERE IS AN EQUITY BETWEEN THE

PRAGMATIC FUNCTION AND THE SYMBOLIC FUNCTION.”
-MICHAEL GRAVES
“ESCAPE FROM THE ARCHITECTURE GHETTO IS ONE OF THE
MAJOR DRIVERS AND HAS BEEN FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.”
-REM KOOLHAAS

“NOT MANY ARCHITECTS HAVE THE LUXURY TO REJECT

SIGNIFICANT THINGS.”
-REM KOOLHAAS

“PEOPLE CAN INHABIT ANYTHING. AND THEY CAN BE

MISERABLE IN ANYTHING AND ECSTATIC IN ANYTHING. MORE
AND MORE I THINK THAT ARCHITECTURE HAS NOTHING TO DO
WITH IT. OF COURSE, THAT’S BOTH LIBERATING AND
ALARMING.”
-REM KOOLHAAS

“ANY ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT WE DO TAKES AT LEAST

FOUR OR FIVE YEARS, SO INCREASINGLY THERE IS A
DISCREPANCY BETWEEN THE ACCELERATION OF CULTURE
AND THE CONTINUING SLOWNESS OF ARCHITECTURE.”
-REM KOOLHAAS

“ALWAYS DESIGN A THING BY CONSIDERING IT IN ITS NEXT

LARGER CONTEXT – A CHAIR IN A ROOM, A ROOM IN A HOUSE,
A HOUSE IN AN ENVIRONMENT, AN ENVIRONMENT IN A CITY
PLAN.”
-ELIEL SAARINEN

“ARCHITECTURAL-FORM EQUALS SOCIAL-FORM.”

-ELIEL SAARINEN

“FUNCTION INFLUENCE BUT DOES NOT DICTATE FORM”

- EERO SAARINEN

"THE PURPOSE OF ARCHITECTURE IS TO SHELTER AND

ENHANCE MAN'S LIFE ON EARTH AND TO FULFILL HIS BELIEF IN
THE NOBILITY OF HIS EXISTENCE"
-EERO SAARINEN

"TO ME, THE DRAWN LANGUAGE IS A VERY REVEALING

LANGUAGE, ONE CAN SEE IN A FEW LINES WHETHER A MAN IS
REALLY AN ARCHITECT"
-EERO SAARINEN

“NOTHING IS AS DANGEROUS IN ARCHITECTURE AS DEALING

WITH SEPARATED PROBLEMS. IF WE SPLIT LIFE INTO
SEPARATED PROBLEMS WE SPLIT THE POSSIBILITIES TO MAKE
GOOD BUILDING ART.”
-ALVAR AALTO

“ARCHITECTURE HAS RECORDED THE GREAT IDEAS OF THE

HUMAN RACE. NOT ONLY EVERY RELIGIOUS SYMBOL, BUT
EVERY HUMAN THOUGHT HAS ITS PAGE IN THAT VAST BOOK.”
-VICTOR HUGO
“ARCHITECTURE IS A ART WHEN ONE CONSCIOUSLY OR
UNCONSCIOUSLY CREATES AESTHETIC EMOTION IN THE
ATMOSPHERE AND WHEN THIS ENVIRONMENT PRODUCES
WELL BEING.”
-LUIS BARRAGAN

“IT IS ESSENTIAL TO AN ARCHITECT TO KNOW HOW TO SEE: I

MEAN, TO SEE IN SUCH A WAY THAT THE VISION IS NOT
OVERPOWERED BY RATIONAL ANALYSIS.”
-LUIS BARRAGAN

“DOES IT FOLLOW THAT THE HOUSE HAS NOTHING IN

COMMON WITH ART AND IS ARCHITECTURE NOT TO BE
INCLUDED IN THE ARTS? ONLY A VERY SMALL PART OF
ARCHITECTURE BELONGS TO ART: THE TOMB AND THE
MONUMENT. EVERYTHING ELSE THAT FULFILS A FUNCTION IS
TO BE EXCLUDED FROM THE DOMAIN OF ART.”
-ADOLF LOOS

“ARCHITECTURE AROUSES SENTIMENTS IN MAN. THE

ARCHITECT’S TASK THEREFORE, IS TO MAKE THOSE
SENTIMENTS MORE PRECISE.”
-ADOLF LOOS

“EACH NEW SITUATION REQUIRES A NEW ARCHITECTURE.”

-JEAN NOUVEL

“TO PROVIDE MEANINGFUL ARCHITECTURE IS NOT TO

PARODY HISTORY BUT TO ARTICULATE IT.”
-DANIEL LIBESKIND

“IT IS INSUFFICIENT FOR ARCHITECTURE TODAY TO DIRECTLY

IMPLEMENT AN EXISTING BUILDING TYPOLOGY; IT INSTEAD
REQUIRES ARCHITECTS TO CAREFULLY EXAMINE THE WHOLE
AREA WITH NEW INTERVENTIONS AND PROGRAMMATIC
TYPOLOGIES.”
-ZAHA HADID