They Said It

This month, we came across quite a few notable public figures speaking about the importance of architecture. Here's a sampling:

President Barack Obama, at the 2011 Pritzker Prize Ceremony

Architecture is about “creating buildings and spaces that inspire us, that help us do our jobs, that bring us together, and that become, at their best, works of art that we can move through and live in. And in the end, that’s why architecture can be considered the most democratic of art forms.“

Rapper Pharrell, on his new youth center, the Pharrell Williams Resource Center

"I believe the architecture of a building says a lot about its soul and I wanted a building for the center that makes a statement to the world and to the kids - something that will stand as a monument of optimism, and felt Chad [Oppenheim Architecture+Design] was the only architect that could capture that. We want the building to look like something out of the future, so it will inspire the kids in it to aspire to greater things."

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, at the National Mayor's Summit on City Design

"Let me say two words: design matters. And cities matter also... If you let mayors do their job, with the proper resources, cutting through red tape, cutting across agencies that are now working together: the department of transportation, EPA, Department of Energy, and certainly our friends at HUD. When you unleash the power of the federal government and un-restrict us from legislation and red tape and paperwork, you'd be surprised at what we can do and how quickly we can do it. Cities matter. Design matters also."

Posted by aao on June 22, 2011 - 4:24pm