A good engineer thinks in reverse and asks himself about the stylistic consequences of the components and systems he proposes.
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Quotes by Helmut Jahn
Explore 25 verified and sourced quotes attributed to Helmut Jahn. Open any quote for its dedicated page, source details and related topics.
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Selected quotes by Helmut Jahn
Creativity has more to do with the elimination of the inessential than with inventing something new.
Higher ceilings allow the use indirect lighting, which is much healthier and reduces glare.
A city building, you experience when you walk; a suburban building, you experience when you drive.
Every building is a prototype. No two are alike.
For me, drawing generates thinking and vice versa.
The architecture profession has lost a lot of its integrity, especially in the USA. The general architect here has no scruples, no ambitions.
When I think of some of my earlier work, it really seems a fortunate coincidence that I succeeded.
Working is actually a pleasure. It's just very time-consuming. It's a way of life. I find that I can work when I travel and work when I run. There is nothing like, on a rainy day, to work.
I think there will be a 200-story skyscraper someday. However, it will require a developer who will not think in conventional terms and for whom economic restraints won't apply.
When I work, I work very hard. When I don't work, I have to do something where my endeavor can totally take me off what I do professionally, like sailing. It takes all your attention.
I think the younger generation, the people poised to dominate the workforce, are more socially conscious. They are more demanding in terms of environment and how that environment contributes to their life.
Chinese buildings are like American buildings, with big footprints. People don't care about daylight or fresh air.
I strive for an architecture from which nothing can be taken away.
I've never looked at a suburban building as being a minor building and an urban building as being a major building.
Transparency is not the same as looking straight through a building: it's not just a physical idea, it's also an intellectual one.
When I came to America in the '60s, it was the place to be. I wonder if I'd come here today.
We prefer synthetic rather than natural materials. Natural products are almost too valuable. Wood is much harder to produce than metal. And metal is recyclable, while wood isn't.
It's my goal to make a building as immaterial as possible. Architecture is a very material thing. It takes a lot of resources, so why not eliminate what you don't need as long as you're able to achieve the same result?
You don't know what the Chinese expect in the way of beauty. The presentation is just a farce. You come into a room filled with 50 people and they don't talk to you. There's very little interaction.
I wanted to improve the suburban office building; to create a great urban space in a suburban environment with all that implies about interaction, collaboration and creativity.
Sometimes I have to accept a job I don't really want. Hardly anybody comes up to you with a commission; it's all competitions these days.
America has always imported history.
For me, though, the fun is over when I get the job.
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