Famous quote by Rem Koolhaas

"People can inhabit anything. And they can be miserable in anything and ecstatic in anything. More and more I think that architecture has nothing to do with it. Of course, that's both liberating and alarming"

About this Quote

Rem Koolhaas’s statement wrestles with the relationship between human experience and the built environment, challenging prevailing assumptions within architecture. At the core, Koolhaas contends that human beings possess an extraordinary adaptability, able to inhabit any environment, regardless of style, comfort, or aesthetics. People are just as capable of experiencing misery or ecstasy in a rundown shack as in a luxurious mansion, suggesting that external conditions do not dictate the spectrum of emotional states.

This assertion implicitly critiques the assumed power of architecture to predetermine happiness or satisfaction. Instead of viewing design as a tool for guaranteeing well-being, Koolhaas proposes that the human response to space is far more subjective, shaped by countless internal and external factors, memories, expectations, personal relationships, cultural values, and even random chance. The claim that architecture might have “nothing to do with it” serves as a radical provocation, undermining the architect’s traditional sense of mission to improve lives solely through spatial mastery.

For practitioners, this perspective is “liberating” because it relieves them of the unrealistic burden of ensuring happiness through design alone. It encourages architects to recognize the limits of their influence and allows greater freedom in exploration and experimentation, without the paralyzing expectation of creating perfect living conditions for every occupant. On the other hand, this view is “alarming” because it questions the ultimate purpose and impact of the architectural profession. If people’s experiences are independent of their surroundings, the significance and authority of the designer are diminished, sparking existential anxiety about the field’s relevance.

Koolhaas’s reflection ultimately highlights the complexity of human life and the limits of environmental determinism. He invites a humbler, more nuanced understanding of architecture’s impact, one that considers the unpredictability and resilience of human subjectivity alongside spatial form.

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Netherland Flag This quote is from Rem Koolhaas somewhere between November 17, 1944 and today. He/she was a famous Architect from Netherland. The author also have 26 other quotes.
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