A few weeks ago our Architectural Team met just to talk about design. An interesting thing came up that, for some reason, took me by surprise. Keith, a seasoned architect, suggested that we all share what buildings inspire us now and in the past. It was such a brilliant idea that seemed to really get the gears turning in the room and I feel even the mere suggestion of it left everyone walking out in deep thought and fond remembrance of what inspires them.
Keith later offered an in depth list of the buildings that have inspired him since before he even knew he wanted to be an architect. It featured The Iowa State Capitol, The Gateway Arch, Ronchamp, Thorncrown Chapel and the Roman Coliseum in Arles, France, to name a few. I find it so interesting to put our own timeline in this perspective and see how our personal tastes have changed and have shaped us as designers. This really can be done for any creative and non-creative field and I strongly encourage everyone to take time to think about where your mind has been, you never know where it can lead.
As I sift through my own list of inspiring places and spaces I come up with a lot of the greats that I found in Keith's list along with many many many painted, drawn and sculpted artworks. The list even included artists and architects where I have enjoyed pretty much their entire body of work. What I found is that the people, pieces, places and spaces that have inspired me the most are those that have captured their surroundings so perfectly that it could not be repeated anywhere else in the world.
My number one for as long as I can remember is Antonio Gaudi. It might, at first, sound cliche to like him, but I can't say I have ever met anyone with the same appreciation for him that I have (well, perhaps my husband). What I enjoy about Gaudi is that he somehow captured Barcelona perfectly in every building he ever designed. When you stand in front of any of his works you feel the sun, you hear the sea, you smell the fish and you embrace the colors that only Barcelona can produce. It's simply magical...
and being in Barcelona never hurts...
I have never incorporated anything Gaudi-esque in my designs, but the idea of understanding a place so well that it is ever-present is something that I will always carry with me forever. Other dreamers, artists and architects that inspire me are: Artemisia Gentileschi, Tintoretto, Francis Bacon, Leonardo da Vinci, Leon Batista Alberti, Brunelleschi, the Saarinen's, Vermeer, Matisse (probably my favorite right now), Manet (not Monet), Renoir, Degas. Interesting that my list is mostly artists rather than architects...and mostly Italian Renaissance or Southern French Impressionists...hmmm...well, we find architectural inspiration in the strangest of places, I suppose, but the point is that we have it.
What/who inspires you?
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