The Creator's Words

"[Louis I. Kahn] recognizes that the real activity of a building, what it 'wants to be,' is regulated by its use. This does not contradict a more doctrinaire functional approach as pure form. Philosophically, the difference between architecture and sculpture has to do with use, with its relation to an activity of man. However, just as a monument, or a pyramid, is something in between art and architecture, so there are bound to be buildings in between. These 'in between' buildings are pure examples of expressionist architecture.

"A building must have a strong idea that is architectural rather than sculptural or painterly —one that is related to the activity in the building. The idea should be something that can be drawn on a napkin or an envelope. When one architect says to another: 'What kind of a building are you doing?' one should immediately be able to draw an abstraction, or a diagram of the architectural idea."

— Edward Larrabee Barnes. from Paul Heyer. Architects on Architecture: New Directions in America. p329.