“There are so many constraints on the architect that public buildings a...” — Toyo Ito Quote

There are so many constraints on the architect that public buildings almost never feel free or enjoyable.

I would like to use architecture to create bonds between people who live in cities, and even use it to recover the communities that used to exist in every single city.

Because there are a lot of big cities in the world, people who live in cities have become more isolated than ever.

We have to base architecture on the environment.

The dreams of the 1960s began to disappear in the 1970s. The economy collapsed, and so did the optimism of the Metabolists.

I went to visit my father to tell him that I was going to go to college and become an architect - that was my dream. I was like, yeah I graduated from school, but it's not like you showed up for that. But all he was worried about is whether or not I wanted money from him.

I'm strong-willed. Architects are strong-willed. You get the best results with a strong client and a strong architect working together.

The architect who first inspired me to follow this profession was Sir John Soane and his Regency home; well, his three homes, now a museum. The place is like an encyclopedia of paintings, antiquities, furniture, sculptures, and drawings.

Who I am as an architect and the history of my work - that's clear to anybody who hires me. But I come in literally with nothing in my brain about what the building will look like.