Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
Cities are about juxtaposition.
Architecture is always political.
Today is much more an age of greed
I don't believe in the ownership of work.
As architects we have a responsibility to society
The gap between the rich and poor is widening fast.
Architecture is about public space held by buildings.
Form follows profit is the aesthetic principle of our times.
Architecture is a slow business, and city planning even slower.
I don't understand why everyone has to wear black, grey and white.
Architects are not clients. We can't build without something to built.
My mother was very family-oriented. And I do love being with my children.
There has to be policies about that, about what materials we use and so on.
This is a pivotal time for urban regeneration. We must take a long term view.
Of course I know very little about architecture, and the older I get the less I know.
The Ranelagh Gardens in Chelsea provide plenty of opportunities to walk, think and relax.
In Florence, classical buildings sit against medieval buildings. It's that contrast we like.
There is a Jewish tradition of family, too, but then not all Italian or Jewish families are close.
Architecture is measured against the past, you build in the present, and try to imagine the future.
Most buildings, whether they're Gothic cathedrals or Romanesque ones, were high tech for their time.
You know, the environment is fragmenting, and the environment is, in many places, absolutely hideous!
Architecture is measured against the past; you build in the future, and you try to imagine the future.
Technology cannot be an end in itself but must aim at solving long term social and ecological problems.
The one advantage of being dyslexic is that you are never tempted to look back and idealise your childhood.
You have to modernise; you have to change - you can't just be traditional for the fun of being traditional.
The only way forward, if we are going to improve the quality of the environment, is to get everybody involved.
Watching TV on your own is not very inspiring. But meeting people is where you get new ideas and get things done.
If you had a carbon tax, you'd have less cars and more bicycles, more people getting around on foot and by public transport.
As an artist, what do you think the biggest mistake you can make is? My vote for the biggest mistake is being afraid of making mistakes.
I think greed is a critical problem - the gap between the poor and the rich. The gap between the top 10 percent and the bottom 10 percent.
Dyslexia, though, made me realise that people who say "but you can't do that" aren't actually very important. I don't take "no" too seriously.
Dyslexia, though, made me realise that people who say 'but you can't do that' aren't actually very important. I don't take 'no' too seriously.
I have a very big family, and that is my number one thing, and we go away for a month to see my cousins in Italy every year, but I need to work.
Cities depend on a healthy mix of uses and people for their vitality. As a pre-eminent world city, London is a magnet to people from across the globe.
A greater focus on design in all new homes would make the best use of land, create homes and public spaces, and reinforce the structures of urban life.
I think you could make a completely Virtual Centre, though I have a general feeling, and maybe because I am getting very old, that you still need face to face.
If I remember rightly Holland for instance has something like 45, and it's a much smaller country. In comparison we have very few and they are very badly financed.
My architecture tends to be legible, light and flexible. You can read it. You look at a building, and you can see how it is constructed. I put the structure outside.
The Athenians had an oath for someone who was about to become a citizen. They had to swear that 'I shall leave the city not less but more beautiful than I found it.'
I am much more passionate about cities than I am about nations. The competition between cities is more civilised than between nations. There is an understanding there.
I like the idea of trying to influence society by taking a brief, then maybe subtly changing it or looking at it in a new way to see what interesting things can emerge.
Architecture is a living thing. If I want to leave something to the future, it has to be able to change - but retain something of the ethos that we built up over 50 years.
I cycle, which is a healthy thing for an 80-year-old to do. I rarely go further than five miles, but in those five miles I can get to 80 percent of the places I want to go.
'Be passionate about your work and your life' was instilled in me by my mother Dada, who was a potter. She also introduced me to the arts and encouraged me to embrace the new.
If you live in a squalid environment, then of course you are going to want to get out of it, you are probably going to want to get into the country, because that's what it does.
Suburban sprawl leads to social atomisation and fragmentation and is environmentally disastrous, as carbon-intensive car journeys displace local shops and replace public transport.
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.
I think we did a pretty good role, linking, being a sounding board really and a driving force, especially from the bottom up. I think that part of this is bottom up as well as top down.
Family is everything, although I've been fortunate enough to have worked with some of the most amazing minds over the years, including Renzo Piano, John Young, Graham Stirk and Ivan Harbour.
It is quite interesting that whilst there are tremendous theories, in the 1960s when IT was born, everybody was supposedly going to their cottage in the countryside to work in a virtual way.