I want to bring out the best in a community and contribute something of permanent value.
I. M. PeiRead
Contemporary architects tend to impose modernity on something. There is a certain concern for history but it’s not very deep. I understand that time has changed, we have evolved. But I don’t want to forget the beginning. A lasting architecture has to have roots.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of historical context in modern architecture.
I. M. Pei suggests that while contemporary architects often prioritize modern design, they should not overlook the significance of history and the roots of architectural evolution. He argues that lasting architecture must connect to its historical origins to maintain depth and meaning.
In practice
In a speech about urban development, one could use this quote to advocate for the integration of historical elements in new buildings.
I want to bring out the best in a community and contribute something of permanent value.
There is a danger when every building has to look spectacular; to look like it is changing the world. I don't care how a building looks if it means something, not to architects, but to the people who use it.
I would like to use architecture to create bonds between people who live in cities, and even use it to recover the communities that used to exist in every single city.
The physician can bury his mistakes, but the architect can only advise his client to plant vines - so they should go as far as possible from home to build their first buildings.
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
I'm particularly interested in the public role that all buildings play. I believe that we architects should try to go beyond our basic obligations to the public, and our opportunities to do so are many.
Why should we build very large spaces when they are not necessary? We can design halls spanning several kilometres and covering a whole city, but we have to ask, what does it really make? What does society really need?
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