Quotes by I.M. Pei

1. Architects are the last profession where “you must know everything”

2. Life is architecture, and architecture comes from life.

3. The most beautiful building should be built on time, and time will give all answers. (Good architecture lasts forever.)

4. No excellent work is completed in an instant and cannot survive the test of time. Whether it is architecture or art, its truest value can only be judged by time. Time is of the essence in my creations.

5. How to show strength? Dare to choose, dare to give up, and have the confidence to carry out the things you have decided. (As said!)

6. Being humble does not mean that I have the slightest compromise. Compromise means surrender.

7. Aspire to the Tao, follow the Tao, rely on benevolence, and swim in art.

8. I never dwell on the past, but focus on the present.

9. I treat every morning when I wake up as a gift, because it means there is still another day to work.

10. My buildings and I are like bamboos. No matter how strong the wind and rain, they only bend.

11. The most important thing when doing things is to have full confidence. You must believe in yourself and leave all kinds of criticism and doubt behind. It doesn't matter whether others accept it or not, I have to accept myself first. (This is especially true for entrepreneurship! Be confident, persevere, and "pretend" to be successful until you really succeed.)

12. In short, architectural designers must have their own style and opinions. If you follow the trend, you will definitely be submerged by history.

13. Any status will pass with time, and the only thing that really remains is the building itself.

14. Let the light do the design.

15. Art and history are the essence of architecture.

16. If you want to take a new path, many people will inevitably feel uncomfortable. Why change? It is very difficult to accept improvement, and the only way to move forward is to move forward.

17. If you want to benefit from travel, you must first learn history.

18. The expression methods of architecture and Chinese characters are similar, that is, "use a few concise words to express broad meanings", "Why spend two strokes to solve a problem that can be solved with one stroke?"< /p>

19. The more national, the more global.

20. People should persist in their principles and should not give up casually. Of course there are many ways to persist and many ways to persuade the other party. But that doesn’t mean that my persistence and demands will be compromised.

21. I am the kind of architect who uses geometry as the driving force for design. We must make various changes and combinations outside the scope of geometry. This is not all, there is also space and light. and many other factors. If there is no light, there is no so-called form. Sunlight is magical because it changes so much.

22. Life is architecture, and architecture is the mirror of life.

23. The top priority for Chinese architects is to explore an architectural form that is within the reach of our limited physics and that respects their own culture.

24. Before you start designing, you must understand the background knowledge of history, culture and people.

25. Think of architecture as a refining process, it should be very pure and clear.

26. How does a building become a part of a continuous whole? A building becomes a permanent and continuous part of history, which is a good work.

27. What is the most important thing for an architect? It's vision.

28. Life is not long. My principle is to only do what I think is beautiful and create a shocking beauty.

29. An architect will not become famous before the age of 40. He is still practicing.

(An architect is not an architect before age of 40.He was only an appretice.)

30. Choosing the right client is far more important than choosing a good project. important than choosing the right project.) (Because of the support of customers, you can realize your ideals)

31. China will become a great country in your generation, but I may not be able to live. See. (China will become a strong nation in your life time. But I probably won't live to see it”)

32. It’s a good thing to learn from antiques. I have a bit of an antique flavor myself. Ancient People always spend a lot of time thinking about architecture and landscape, and now we are in a hurry to do everything, but architecture should be done slowly, and landscape creation should take up more time than architecture. The political system cannot tolerate it.

33. Aesthetics is the most important thing. Young people should gradually strengthen their aesthetics. In the future, they may not necessarily become architects, but must be artists. In terms of economics, those who work in banks should also have an aesthetic sense. If they want to achieve success, they need to be given aesthetic education. Education is very important.

34. Architects believe in Feng Shui, not superstitious Feng Shui. There are several types of Feng Shui. For example, our buildings should be placed against mountains and rivers. This is also Feng Shui. I think we should believe in Feng Shui, but if Feng Shui is taken too far, it will become superstitious. I object to this.

35. The purpose of architecture is to enhance life, not just to be an object to be appreciated in space. Architecture must integrate human activities and improve the quality of this activity. This is my opinion. Architectural perspective. I hope people will understand my work from this perspective.