“It was the drawing that led me to architecture, the search for light a...” — Oscar Niemeyer Quote

It was the drawing that led me to architecture, the search for light and astonishing forms.

I search for surprise in my architecture. A work of art should cause the emotion of newness.

Right angles don't attract me. Nor straight, hard and inflexible lines created by man.

Of course, I have given my engineers some headaches over the years, but they go with me. I have always wanted my buildings to be as light as possible, to touch the ground gently, to swoop and soar, and to surprise.

I am a Brazilian before I am an architect. I cannot separate the two.

Our utilitarian structures will mature into architecture only when, through their fulfillment of function, they become carriers of the will of the age.

Instead of using the machine as a metaphor for architecture, as Le Corbusier did, I use the human body. I want the public to know that it's them I'm designing for.

Although we're architects, we believe we do culture; architecture is culture, and the topics we tackle will always arise a broader debate.

I always look forward to the next project. That is one of the wonderful things about architecture - you always can hope for another project to design.