John Portman Quotations

Buildings should serve people, not the other way around.

We must learn to understand humanity better so that we can create an environment that is more beneficial to people, more rewarding, more pleasant to experience.

The definition of the design problem comes from understanding the essence of the variables, but the solution evolves through the application of constants, principles of design that hold true in every case. The resulting design should be a marriage of the constants and the variables.

Architecture is not a private affair; even a house must serve a whole family and its friends, and most buildings are used by everybody, people of all walks of life. If a building is to meet the needs of all the people, the architect must look for some common ground of understanding and experience.

Architects must build up a consistent design philosophy. Such a philosophy is the rudder for the boat; it makes possible a continuing course in meaningful direction. I felt the need to develop a design philosophy, in which I could believe, one that would give direction to my architecture and withstand the test of time.

Architects in the past have tended to concentrate their attention on the building as a static object. I believe dynamics are more important: the dynamics of people, their interaction with spaces and environmental condition.

Another way to understand this opposition of principles and practical obstacles is to speak of statistics and dynamics.

It is through accomplishment that man makes his contribution and contribution is life's greatest reward.

Inspired by the project's unique blending of commercial and cultural interests, the goal was to create an iconic, yet pragmatic design.