Ida Pauline Rolf Quotes

Order is the shape upon which beauty depends.

I am a person who believes in form, in the harmony of order. Where we can, we must give things a meaningful shape.

The difference between utility and utility plus beauty is the difference between telephone wires and the spider web.

Form follows beauty.

We refuse to recognize problems of form, but only problems of building. Form is not the aim of our work, but only the result. Form, by itself, does not exist. Form as an aim is formalism; and that we reject.

Form must have a content, and that content must be linked with nature.

'Form follows function' comes with so much baggage. It's a worthless phrase because you'll never take it for what it means.

Design is a plan for arranging elements in such a way as best to accomplish a particular purpose.

When I work on sculpture, I don't have to worry about function. When I work on a piece of architecture, I must think about function all the time.

I think my love of form is especially informed by my background, whether this is creating a wonderful silhouette in a dress or finding the perfect shape for a bowl or the 'just so' angle of a table leg.

Nothing useless is, or low; Each thing in its place is best; And what seems but idle show Strengthens and supports the rest.

Furniture is meant to be used and enjoyed.

Beauty and brains, pleasure and usability - they should go hand in hand.

I knew style and content went hand in hand.

Form follows function.

Building art is a synthesis of life in materialised form. We should try to bring in under the same hat not a splintered way of thinking, but all in harmony together.

A figure with curves always offers a lot of interesting angles.

Architecture depends on facts, but its real field of activity lies in the realm of the significance.

Architecture is basically a container of something. I hope they will enjoy not so much the teacup, but the tea.

The goodness of a thing created is the perfection of its fitness for the use which it serves. Now that use is either particular or universal.

Purpose is not necessary to make a building beautiful.

Form follows function - that has been misunderstood. Form and function should be one, joined in a spiritual union.

Well-building hat three conditions. Commodity, firmness, and delight.

Early in my career, I tried to bring an artistic feeling to architecture. That's really the intent and impression of what I think about: context, space, shapes, and landscape.

One cannot separate the spider web's form from the way in which it originated.