Life is more important than architecture.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
We hated Bauhaus. It was a bad time in architecture. They just didn’t have any talent. All they had were rules. Even for knives and forks they created rules. Picasso would never have accepted rules. The house is like a machine? No! The mechanical is ugly. The rule is the worst thing. You just want to break it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Oscar Niemeyer criticizes the rigid rules of Bauhaus architecture, emphasizing the importance of creativity over conformity.
In this quote, Oscar Niemeyer expresses his disdain for the Bauhaus movement, which he believes focused too heavily on strict rules and minimalism at the expense of artistic expression and creativity. He contrasts this with the revolutionary spirit of artists like Picasso, who rejected limitations and embraced the beauty of the unconventional. Niemeyer argues that rules stifle creativity, and he advocates for artistic freedom in architecture, suggesting that true beauty cannot be constrained by mechanical principles.
Themes
BauhausArchitectureCreativityRulesArtistic ExpressionOscari Niemeyer
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on architectural design, one might quote Niemeyer to emphasize the need for creativity over strict adherence to rules.
More from Oscar Niemeyer
All quotes →I deliberately disregarded the right angle and rationalist architecture designed with ruler and square to boldly enter the world of curves and straight lines offered by reinforced concrete... This deliberate protest arose from the environment in which I lived, with its white beaches, its huge mountains, its old baroque churches, and the beautiful suntanned women.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
We need to feel that life is important; we need that fantasy so we can live a little better.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
Here, then, is what I wanted to tell you of my architecture. I created it with courage and idealism, but also with an awareness of the fact that what is important is life, friends and attempting to make this unjust world a better place in which to live.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
When you have a large space to conquer, the curve is the natural solution.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
I was attracted by the curve — the liberated, sensual curve suggested by the possibilities of new technology yet so often recalled in venerable old baroque churches.
Oscar NiemeyerRead
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