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When I design buildings, I think of the overall composition, much as the parts of a body would fit together. On top of that, I think about how people will approach the building and experience that space.
Tadao Ando
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Architecture should harmonize with its surroundings and the experience of those who use it.

In this quote, Tadao Ando emphasizes the importance of holistic architectural design, likening buildings to the human body where all parts must work in concert. He highlights that an architect must consider both the aesthetic composition of the structure and the way individuals interact with and experience the space, suggesting that good architecture transcends mere functionality and engages the senses.

Themes

ArchitectureDesignExperienceCompositionSpace

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used during a speech at an architecture conference to emphasize the importance of user experience in design.

More from Tadao Ando

I think architecture becomes interesting when it has a double character, that is, when it is as simple as possible but, at the same time as complex as possible
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I create enclosed spaces mainly by means of thick concrete walls. The primary reason is to create a place for the individual, a zone for oneself within society. When the external factors of a city's environment require the wall to be without openings, the interior must be especially full and satisfying.
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I believe that architecture is fundamentally a public space where people can gather and communicate, think about the history, think about the lives of human beings, or the world.
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All architecture has a public nature, I believe, so I would like to make a public space.
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I like ruins because what remains is not the total design, but the clarity of thought, the naked structure, the spirit of the thing.
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In the West there has always been the attempt to try make the religious building, whether it's a Medieval or Renaissance church, an eternal object for the celebration of God. The material chosen, such as stone, brick, or concrete, is meant to eternally preserve what is inside.
Tadao AndoRead

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