Rebellion And Freedom

I was always a disobedient youngster.

I always used to make my mother cry.

But artistic “disobedience” is civil disobedience,

Because if you want to do something you will always end up disobeying.

If you obey you are finished.

Architecture is a great adventure and a fight against gravity.

I rebel against the obvious,

And I hate the idea of style and the formulaic gesture.

by Renzo Piano

The Paintings Were Like Tests

I still like black-and-white drawings a lot—really crisp line drawings.

I have a personal preference for them,

But I think color is not necessarily used as a decoration.

It shows the temper, in a way.

It also unveils the quality of the architecture.

Every time we painted a drawing,

It changed our view of how the building was actually conceived in terms of materials,

And of its color.

For instance, with the Peak (Hong Kong, 1983)

We really had no idea about how it should be finished.

By the use of drawings and painting slowly but surely,

We’ve developed a confirmed opinion.

The paintings were like tests

by Zaha Hadid

About Serving Spirits And About Death

Jilu asked about the worship of gods and spirits.

Confucius said, " We don't know yet how to serve men, how can we know about serving the spirits?"

"What about death?" was the next question,

And Confucius said, "We don't know yet about life, how can we know about death?"

taken from:

the Analects of Confucius

Book 11, Chapter 11

How Different Individuals Stop At Different Stages of Progress

The Master said,

"There are some with whom we may study in common,

But we shall find them unable to go along with us to principles.

Perhaps we may go on with them to principles,

But we shall find them unable to get established in those along with us.

Or if we may get so established along with them,

We shall find them unable to weigh occurring events along with us."

taken from:

The Analects of Confucius

Book 9, Chapter 29

Architecture Is An Old Man’s Business

When two of my sons wanted to be architects, which is in fact what they are now,

I was rather negative about it.

I said it is a rather difficult life.

To be an architect you have to have a great love for the profession that you are entering into,

And success does not come early.

It is an old man’s business.

You have to work for many years before you are recognized

Or given the opportunity to do work on your own.

We are dealing with fairly large investment of capital.

People don’t just choose a twenty-five-year-old to design an office building.

A small house perhaps, if you are lucky.

I did not encourage them to study to become architects,

Nor did I discourage them.

When they said that they wanted to,

I said, “Alright then, go ahead.”

by I.M Pei

Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

Distinction

‎"In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west;

People create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true."

The Buddha