Marcel Breuer Quotes

“Architecture must first of all be useful. If I had the choice between something neutral and useful and something that is novel or beautiful but useless, I prefer the first.”

“I like research to bite into certain problem. But I do not want to survey all the possible solutions. There are various ways to get to Rome.”

“Modern architecture is not a style, it's an attitude.”

“Structure is not just a means to a solution. It is also a principle and a passion.”

“The artist works with the highest level of feeling.

The technician works with the highest level of logic.”

“Two years ago when I saw the finished version of my first steel club armchair, I thought that this out of all my work would bring me the most criticism.

It is my most extreme work both in its outward appearance and in the use of materials; it is the least artistic, the most logical, the least ‘cosy’ and the most mechanical.”

“You cannot design a new roof, any more than you can write a new Ten Commandments. Originality includes the courage to copy.”

“I am as much interested in the smallest detail as in the whole structure.”

“What a wonderful site! How do we avoid spoiling it?”