Described as a “Hegel in tight jeans,” American architect Joshua Prince-Ramus has taken to the pages of a style magazine to rail against the stereotype of the visionary starchitect:
“All the great architects–every one of them–says, ‘It represents. . . .’ I say to students, ‘Don’t you think it would be great if architecture just started doing again? Why are we representing? Do–it’s much more powerful. I’ve never seen a client give a shit about my personal vision. I had to figure out how to piggyback what my vision was onto their issues. I’ve never been comfortable”–he grabs a sheet of white paper, uncaps his pen, and starts whorling in black ink–”doing Frank Gehry. I would never suppose that someone would look at my sketch and go, Aaahhhhhhhhhh. No wonder architecture’s dead–because that’s what everyone thinks architecture is now. When Calatrava and Gehry die, it’s done–no one’s gonna pay us to do that. So it’s terrifying for me to look at schools trying to bring out your personal vision.”
http://www.esquire.com/features/best-and-brightest-2008/joshua-prince-ramus-1208