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"Architecture is a small piece of this human equation, but for those of us who practice it, we believe in its potential to make a difference, to enlighten and to enrich the human experience, to penetrate the barriers of misunderstanding and provide a beautiful context for life's drama." - Frank Gehry in his 1989 Pritzker Prize Ceremony Speechĥ0. Great architecture makes nature more beautiful-it gives it power."- Claudio Silvestrin in Elle DecorĤ9. "Architecture is supposed to complete nature. "Architecture is the petrification of a cultural moment." - Jean Nouvel in NewsweekĤ8. But good luck getting away from architecture." - Philippe Daverio in Humans of New Yorkģ0. You can avoid paintings, you can avoid music, and you can even avoid history. "Architecture is the only art that you can't help but feel. Pritzker in his 1985 Pritzker Ceremony SpeechĢ9. "Architecture is intended to transcend the simple need for shelter and security by becoming an expression of artistry." - Jay A. It’s very rare that all the forces that need to coincide to actually make a project proceed are happening at the same time." - Rem Koolhaas in Co.DesignĢ8. "Architecture is a very complex effort everywhere.
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"Architecture is about serving others through the design of the built environment." - Kevin J Singh in " 21 Rules for A Successful Life in Architecture"Ģ7. "Architecture is an untapped source of magnificent stories waiting to be imagined, visualized, and built." - Matthew Hoffman in " Blank Space Launches Architecture Storytelling Competition"Ģ6. "Architecture is a language: new designs should abide by grammatical rules to avoid dissonance with existing structures." - Prince Charles in The Architectural ReviewĢ5. "Architecture is much more than the building of an object on a site: it is a reinvention of the site itself." - Sean Lally in The Air From Other PlanetsĢ4. … It has to deal with the real situation it has to do something good for the society." - Xiaodu Liu in " What Can Architecture Do? An Interview with Xiaodu Liu" on ArchDailyĢ3. "Architecture is about improving conditions: environmental, social and sometimes also political." - Arjen Oosterman in VolumeĢ2. "Architecture is geometry." - Álvaro Siza in Imaginar a Evidência ( Imagining Evidence)Ģ1. It's the art of what is possible." - Paul Rudolph in Chicago Architects Oral History ProjectĢ0. "Architecture is not a question of the purely theoretical if you're interested in building buildings.
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"Architecture is merciless: it is what it is, it works or doesn’t, and you can clearly see the difference." - Jacques Herzog in a lecture at Columbia Universityġ9. "Architecture is the art and science of making sure that our cities and buildings actually fit with the way we want to live our lives: the process of manifesting our society into our physical world. "Architecture is a way of seeing, thinking and questioning our world and our place in it." - Thom Mayne in his Prtizker Prize Acceptance Speechĥ. "Architecture is by definition a very collaborative process." - Joshua Prince-Ramus in Fast CompanyĤ. It's very tough." - Zaha Hadid in The Guardianģ. "Architecture is unnecessarily difficult.
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"Architecture is definitely a political act." - Peter Eisenman in HaaretzĢ. Sources and/or context are included for each definition.ġ. Yet many are part of a larger, nuanced conversation. This collection of statements illustrates the changing breadth of architecture’s significance we may define it differently when talking among peers, or adjust our statements for outsiders.Ī note: In an age that is particularly enamored with capturing ideas in 140 characters or less, it is tempting to take these remarks out of context. Perhaps, though, most importantly, architecture is accommodating and inherently open to possibility. Most days, architecture is a tough practice on others, it is wonderfully satisfying.
Architect definition professional#
And yet, many of us have uttered - or at least thought- “Architecture is…” while we’ve toiled away on an important project, or reflected on why we’ve chosen this professional path. To begin a sentence with “Architecture is” is a bold step into treacherous territory. While some embrace it as art, others defend architecture’s seminal social responsibility as its most definitive attribute. There are at least as many definitions of architecture as there are architects or people who comment on the practice of it.
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