A vision of the future

Yet in spite of so many problems with the profession, in the modern era, the possibility of beauty in the built world remains largely in the hands of architects. It is we who hold a candle in the dark, it is we who are the keepers of the flame. And, in spite of the horrible mistakes we have made all over the world, during recent decades, it is still mainly we who, in society’s eyes, hold the possibility of a beautiful and living world.

I called Book 1 The Phenomenon of Life because the life I have described, is indeed a phenomenon. Like other phenomena, it cannot be denied. It is simply there. And because it is there, it is there for all of us. All of us, who live together in this world, have access to this life, and to the knowledge of it.
That means — if we choose to — we may draw upon it. We are free, if we wish to, to create an architecture that is based on life. Or we are free to ignore it. How could we choose ignorance?

But to reach these marvels, I see this architecture of a future time as something that generation after generation of young architects and builders must work their way towards, must fasten onto, listen to, study, and prepare for. I see generations of young men and women finding this new architecture in which the phenomenon of life is caught, by which it is inspired, and in which we human beings may once again have our existence affirmed by the beauty of our surroundings.

#book/The Nature of Order/2 The process of creating life/21 The role of the architect in the third millennium#

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