I try firstly to make buildings humane. Moshe Safdie More Quotes by Moshe Safdie More Quotes From Moshe Safdie Architecture is not about building the impossible, which we can do if we have enough money and enough tools and enough computers. It is about building what is appropriate and about attaining beauty through such an approach. I describe this premise as 'inherent buildability', and I believe it is central to what I do. Moshe Safdie money beauty believe Architecture should be rooted in the past, and yet be part of our own time and forward looking. Moshe Safdie looking-forward future past He who seeks truth shall find beauty. He who seeks beauty shall find vanity. He who seeks order shall find gratification. He who seeks gratification shall be disappointed. He who considers himself the servant of his fellow beings shall find the joy of self-expression. He who seeks self-expression shall fall into the pit of arrogance. Moshe Safdie motivation inspiration fall I think you need to, as an architect, understand the essence of a place and create a building that feels like it resonates with the culture of a place. So my buildings in India or in Kansas City or in Arkansas or in Singapore, they come out different because the places are so different. Moshe Safdie kansas-city essence thinking Who knows, maybe I am simply a talented architect? Moshe Safdie architect knows Architecture has joined the world of fashion, but fashion is passing and architecture is timeless. Moshe Safdie architecture fashion world Beauty connotes humanity. We call a natural object beautiful because we see that its form expresses fitness, the perfect fulfillment of function. Moshe Safdie motivation inspiration beautiful The greatest satisfaction, I think, is when a building opens and the public possesses it and you cut the umbilical cord and you see it taking on its own life. There’s no greater satisfaction. Moshe Safdie umbilical-cord cutting thinking This is the contradictory desire in our utopia. We want to live in a small community with which we can identify and yet we want all the facilities of the city of millions of people. We want to have very intense urban experiences and yet we want the open space right next to us. Moshe Safdie space cities people I'm completely taken and impressed by the planning authority of Singapore and its Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It's the most cutting-edge agency in the world. They have very effective guidelines for development, and they review design as it evolves. Moshe Safdie agency cutting taken We are producing urban places which are disjointed and disconnected and not worthy of our civilisation Moshe Safdie urban worthy architecture There is a profound ethic to architecture which is different from the other arts. Moshe Safdie different profound art I want my children to be able to meet and play and communicate with many other children on their own, not only when they are driven somewhere. I want them to grow up in an environment that is not just a place where people sleep but where people work.. and where people enjoy themselves. Moshe Safdie growing-up sleep children Urban design as a discipline barely exists in most American and Canadian cities. In Singapore, there are innovative transportation strategies at work. Moshe Safdie design discipline cities Performing arts buildings are complex. The acoustics, the sight lines and all that have to just be perfect. So you begin with just making these things sublime as musical instruments. And if you fail there, you have failed it all. Moshe Safdie sight perfect art Architecture is changing faster than some other professions. Moshe Safdie profession architecture faster I think the general public's response to my projects is very strong. You can be an intellectual and say that popularity detracts from architectural quality. On the other hand, you can see in the public's identification something very positive. Moshe Safdie strong hands thinking I want my buildings to take root and look as if they've always been there. It isn't about pastiche or adapting what's already there. It's about trying to blend the future and the past. Moshe Safdie buildings look future past We live in a complicated, oppressive world with enormous cities and vast populations, and I try to contribute by making it more light and open and calm. Moshe Safdie live calm light world A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely. They don't affect society as a whole. We build buildings that have a purpose, that stay there for hundreds of years or decades. Moshe Safdie buildings stay society purpose
