Architecture is measured against the past, you build in the present, and try to imagine the future.
Form follows profit is the aesthetic principle of our times.
Architecture is about public space held by buildings.
My passion and great enjoyment for architecture, and the reason the older I get the more I enjoy it, is because I believe we - architects - can effect the quality of life of the people.
The only way forward, if we are going to improve the quality of the environment, is to get everybody involved.
As an artist, what do you think the biggest mistake you can make is? My vote for the biggest mistake is being afraid of making mistakes.
As architects we have a responsibility to society
Technology cannot be an end in itself but must aim at solving long term social and ecological problems.
Sustainable development: Meeting present needs without compromising the stock of natural resources remaining for future generations. In terms of buildings, it implies resource efficiency, minimum energy use, flexibility and long life
I don't understand why everyone has to wear black, grey and white.
Everyone has the right to walk from one end of the city to the other in secure and beautiful spaces. Everybody has the right to go by public transport. Everybody has the right to an unhampered view down their street, not full of railings, signs and rubbish.
It is my belief that exciting things happen when a variety of overlapping activities designed for all people-the old and the young, the blue and white collar, the local inhabitant and the visitor, different activities for different occasions-meet in a flexible environment, opening up the possibility of interaction outside the confines of institutional limits. When this takes place, deprived areas welcome dynamic places for those who live, work and visit; places where all can participate, rather than less or more beautiful ghettos.
Cities are about juxtaposition.
Dyslexia, though, made me realise that people who say "but you can't do that" aren't actually very important. I don't take "no" too seriously.
Architecture is a slow business, and city planning even slower.
I believe very strongly, and have fought since many years ago - at least over 30 years ago - to get architecture not just within schools, but architecture talked about under history, geography, science, technology, art.
This is a pivotal time for urban regeneration. We must take a long term view.
Of course I know very little about architecture, and the older I get the less I know.
There has to be policies about that, about what materials we use and so on.
The gap between the rich and poor is widening fast.
I'm just saying that there are high quality materials, and when we change them then there should be a way of changing them so that you can celebrate that change - rather than just 'mix it up'.
In Florence, classical buildings sit against medieval buildings. It's that contrast we like.
There are times I almost think I am not sure of what I absolutely know. Very often find confusion in conclusion I concluded long ago. In my head are many facts that, as a student, I have studied to procure. In my head are many facts of which I wish I was more certain I was sure.
If you live in a squalid environment, then of course you are going to want to get out of it, you are probably going to want to get into the country, because that's what it does.
There is a Jewish tradition of family, too, but then not all Italian or Jewish families are close.
