"Places are spaces that you can remember, that you can care about and make a part of your life" - Charles Moore
A seat, a room, a building, a city - all of these should be designed as places that that are reponsive to and expressive of the intentions, emotions, memories, and dreams of their inhabitants.
We experience architecture through our senses and physical movement
Architecture should be designed as it will be exprienced through the senses and physical movement of the human body; not just sight but also sound, touch, warmth or coolness, feelings of shelter or openness and freedom. All dimensions, big and small, shoud be carefully calibrated for the comfort and ease of the activities & movement that they support.
Architecture should be intentional and cohesive
Just as there are many different types of people, there are many different expressions of architecture; but all varieties of architectural expression should have an intentional point of view about the space they create, and all of the elements, from the overall plan to the small detail, should be considered as synergistic pieces of the same expression.
Rooms should first be beautiful and graceful in their form and proportions
Most of the volumes of space we spend time in are haphazardly proportioned and awkwardly shaped. Many classical spaces, freed from requirements to accomodate plumbing, closets, appliances, heating and cooling equipment and so on, had inherent elegance and serenity. This same serenity can be achieved in modern spaces through careful design that incorporates modern spatial requirements seamlessly within pure and clear volumes.
Design should support inhabitation and rituals of activity that will be performed by its occupants
Any occupant who dwells in a space makes it their own over time, through use, arrangement, decoration, expression, and memory-making. Architectural design should always support, intensify, and leave space for inhabitation and the rituals of everyday use that belong to the people who will live in it.
Authentic architecture makes its construction and design intent legible
Structure should express how it works, materials should exist as themselves, joints and details should reveal how things come together. Design is a statement of what something was and what it should be, and should speak those intentions clearly. Intervention into any existing building begins by discovering its character and story, thoughtfully choosing what to reveal and express, and what to radically transform.
High quality built work flows naturally from drawings that are detailed and well-organized
As they are the medium through which design is communicated, drawings and other documentation should be comprehensive, detailed, well-composed, and visually clear.