This initiative is an attempt to curate inspiring morsels largely focused on design, art, philosophy and architecture. Enjoy!
Inspirational Quotes from Famous Architects link here
Inspirational Quotes from Famous Architects link here
“Think of and look at your work as though it were done by your enemy. If you look at it to admire it, you are lost” — Me
Approach vs. style
"Without aesthetic, design is either the humdrum repetition of familiar cliches or a wild scramble for novelty. Without the aesthetic, the computer is but a mindless speed machine, producing effects without substance. Form without relevant content, or content without meaningful form." Paul Rand
Give Up!
"If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't walk then crawl. But whatever you do, you MUST keep moving forward. Don't ever give up! " Martin Luther King Jr
Foolproof
"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools." Douglas Adams
"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak." Hans Hofmann
Curiosity
"Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people." Leo Burnett
"When people say they don’t understand design, it’s because they don’t get involved in the process." Tom Dair
Essential mistakes
"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new." Albert Einstein
Influences
"No design can exist in isolation. It is always related, sometimes in very complex ways, to an entire constellation of influencing situations and attitudes. What we call a good design is one which achieves integrity – that is, unity or wholeness – in balanced relation to its environment. The reason good design is hard to come by is that its creation demands a high degree of emotional and intellectual maturity in the designer, and such people are not found too often." George Nelson
Helvetica
"Helvetica is like a good screwdriver; a reliable, efficient, easy-to-use tool. But put in the wrong hands and it’s potentially lethal." Tom Geismar
"When I am working on a problem I never think about beauty. I'm only think about how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.” Buckminster Fuller
Rewards
"Designer's derive their rewards from ‘inner standards of excellence, from the intrinsic satisfaction of their tasks. They are committed to the task, not the job. To their standards, not their boss. So whereas most people divide their lives between time spent earning money and time spent spending it, designers generally lead a seamless existence in which work and play are synonymous." Richard Sapper
Master
"Learn the principle, abide by the principle, and dissolve the principle. In short, enter a mold without being caged in it. Obey the principle without being bound by it. Learn, Master and Achieve!." Bruce Lee
Ideation
"My method is different. I do not rush into actual work. When I get a new idea, I start at once building it up in my imagination, and make improvements and operate the device in my mind. When I have gone so far as to embody everything in my invention, every possible improvement I can think of, and when I see no fault anywhere, I put into concrete form the final product of my brain." Nikola Tesla
Subjectivity
"The designer does not, as a rule, begin with a preconceived idea. His idea is the result of subjective and objective thought, and the design a product of the idea. In order, therefore, to achieve an honest and effective solution he necessarily passes thought some sort of mental process. Consciously or not, he analyzes, interprets, translates. He improvises, invents new techniques and combinations. He coordinates and integrates his material so that he may restate his problem in terms of ideas, pictures, forms, and shapes. He unifies, simplifies, eliminates superfluities. He symbolizes ... abstract from his material by association and analogy. He intensifies and reinforces his symbol with appropriate accessories to achieve clarity and interest. He draws upon instinct and intuition. He considers the spectator, his feelings and predilections." Paul Rand
"Our guiding principle was that design is neither an intellectual nor a material affair, but simply an integral part of the stuff of life, necessary for everyone in a civilized society." Walter Gropius
Understanding design
"To understand the meaning of design is… to understand the part form and content play… and to realize that design is also commentary, opinion, a point of view, and social responsibility. To design is much more than simply to assemble, to order, or even to edit; it is to add value and meaning, to illuminate, to simplify, to clarify, to modify, to dignify, to dramatize, to persuade, and perhaps even to amuse. Design is both a verb and a noun. It is the beginning as well as the end, the process and product of imagination." Paul Rand
All in a moment
"Something that shapes our work as designers is personal experience. In my life I experience tremendous change, moving from Hong Kong to Los Angeles, from one person to the next, from advertising to design, my roles change every minute of the day. This minute I'm a friend, next minute I'll be a son. I can be an employer or an employee at the same time. Human experiences are multidimensional, and in my work I would like to reflect that." Tung Chiang
Form and beauty
"Beauty will result from the form and the correspondence of the whole, with respect to the several parts, of the parts with regard to each other, and of these again to the whole; that the structure may appear an entire and complete body, wherein each member agrees with the other, and all necessary to compose what you intend to form." Andrea Palladio
Deadlines
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they go by." Douglas Adams
Function
"To say a grid is limiting is to say that language is limiting, or typography is limiting. It is up to us to use these media critically or passively." Ellen Lupton
