Helmut Jahn Quotes

You’d never think of taking a cab if you had to walk a mile down Chicago’s Michigan Avenue. But in a bad city you take a cab just to go around the corner.

You don’t know what the Chinese expect in the way of beauty. The presentation is just a farce. You come into a room filled with 50 people and they don’t talk to you. There’s very little interaction.

When I think of some of my earlier work, it really seems a fortunate coincidence that I succeeded.

When I came to America in the ’60s, it was the place to be. I wonder if I’d come here today.

We want our buildings to work like a machine that will create a pleasurable environment.

We prefer synthetic rather than natural materials. Natural products are almost too valuable. Wood is much harder to produce than metal. And metal is recyclable, while wood isn’t.

Transparency is not the same as looking straight through a building: it’s not just a physical idea, it’s also an intellectual one.

The architecture profession has lost a lot of its integrity, especially in the USA. The general architect here has no scruples, no ambitions.

The American attitude towards efficiency and execution should always underlie architecture.

Sometimes I have to accept a job I don’t really want. Hardly anybody comes up to you with a commission; it’s all competitions these days.

Most architects say: I want to use this type of glass, even if it’s too reflective or doesn’t let enough light in. However, the use of a certain type of glass might change the comfort level.

It’s my goal to make a building as immaterial as possible. Architecture is a very material thing. It takes a lot of resources, so why not eliminate what you don’t need as long as you’re able to achieve the same result?

In Europe, they’re more demanding, the ones that rent the build ings.

In Europe, architects consider themselves artists. They think they’re special when they win a competition.

I’ve never looked at a suburban building as being a minor building and an urban building as being a major building.

I wanted to improve the suburban office building; to create a great urban space in a suburban environment with all that implies about interaction, collaboration and creativity.

I think the younger generation, the people poised to dominate the workforce, are more socially conscious. They are more demanding in terms of environment and how that environment contributes to their life.

I strive for an architecture from which nothing can be taken away.

Higher ceilings allow the use indirect lighting, which is much healthier and reduces glare.