--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mies van der Rohe's architecture and…" description: "\"Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture in general suffered from not only being repetitive, but not explaining to the populous what th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg" --- # Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture… ![“Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture in general suffered from not only being repetitive, but not explaining to the populous what the different rooms were for.” quote by Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg) > “Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture in general suffered from not only being repetitive, but not explaining to the populous what the different rooms were for.” [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Architecture often repeats without clear purpose, confusing the public about space functions. **In simple terms:** Repetitive design confuses users. Key Takeaway Design with clear intent and communication. Themes design communication public understanding repetition Mood analytical critical Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - urban planning - building design - educational tours Key Concepts architectural theory user experience cultural context Questions to Reflect On - How can architects balance innovation and clarity? - What role does public education play? A Different Perspective Simplicity may limit artistic expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture/) [Architecture Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture-modern-3075344/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Explaining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explaining/) [General](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general/) [Mies van der rohe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mies-van-der-rohe-122047/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-architecture/) [Only](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/only/) [Repetitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repetitive/) [Repetitive Explaining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repetitive-explaining-4800328/) [Rohe Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rohe-architecture-4800327/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Suffered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffered/) [Suffered Repetitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffered-repetitive-4800326/) [Van](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/van/) [Were](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/were/) ## Related quotes > [“Modern architecture only becomes modern with its engagement with the media.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatriz-colomina/modern-architecture-only-becomes-modern-with-its-engagement-with-the/) [Beatriz Colomina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatriz-colomina/) > [Modern Architecture died in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 15, 1972, at 3.32 p.m. (or thereabouts), when the infamous Pruitt Igoe scheme, or rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/modern-architecture-died-in-st-louis-missouri-on-july-15-1972-at-3-32/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [So here I stand before you preaching organic architecture: declaring organic architecture to be the modern ideal and the teaching so much needed if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lloyd-wright/so-here-i-stand-before-you-preaching-organic-architecture-declaring-2/) [Frank Lloyd Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lloyd-wright/) > [So here I stand before you preaching organic architecture: declaring organic architecture to be the modern ideal...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lloyd-wright/so-here-i-stand-before-you-preaching-organic-architecture-declaring/) [Frank Lloyd Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lloyd-wright/) > [After World War II great strides were made in modern Japanese architecture, not only in advanced technology, allowing earthquake resistant tall buildings, but expressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-seidler/after-world-war-ii-great-strides-were-made-in-modern-japanese/) [Harry Seidler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-seidler/) > [If you look at a building by Mies van der Rohe, it might look very simple, but up close, the sheer quality of construction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chipperfield/if-you-look-at-a-building-by-mies-van-der-rohe-it-might-look-very/) [David Chipperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chipperfield/) > [I have always accepted and respected all other schools of architecture, from the chill and elemental structures of Mies van der Rohe to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-have-always-accepted-and-respected-all-other-schools-of/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [“I stepped from the desert doorway with nothing except the clothes on my back and a shoulder bag filled with notebooks—blue-lined paper pads bound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-salopek/i-stepped-from-the-desert-doorway-with-nothing-except-the-clothes-on/) [Paul Salopek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-salopek/) > [“An admirer of architects Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier, Mr. Vignelli moved to New York from Italy in the mid-1960s hoping to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-admirer-of-architects-mies-van-der-rohe-and-le-corbusier-mr/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Berlin of the '20s formed the foundation of my future education... the Berlin of the UFA studios, of Fritz Lang, Lubitsch and Erich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-adam/the-berlin-of-the-20s-formed-the-foundation-of-my-future-education/) [Ken Adam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-adam/) > [We are all affected by Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Alvar Aalto, and Mies van der Rohe. But no less than Bramante, Borromini, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-meier/we-are-all-affected-by-le-corbusier-frank-lloyd-wright-alvar-aalto/) [Richard Meier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-meier/) > [A visionary company is like a great work of art. Think of Michelangelo's scenes from Genesis on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/a-visionary-company-is-like-a-great-work-of-art-think-of-michelangelo/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [“One afternoon he started to talk about his collection of books. Of 3000 books, he found only 30 worth keeping. We were all ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-blaser/one-afternoon-he-started-to-talk-about-his-collection-of-books-of/) [Werner Blaser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-blaser/) > [I could have been an architect, but I don't think I'd have been very happy. Nearly all modern architecture is a silly game as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/i-could-have-been-an-architect-but-i-don-t-think-i-d-have-been-very/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [A building is akin to dogma; it is insolent, like dogma. Whether or no it is permanent, it claims permanence, like a dogma. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/a-building-is-akin-to-dogma-it-is-insolent-like-dogma-whether-or-no/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) ## More by Charles Jencks > [If you can't take the kitsch, get out of the kitchen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/if-you-can-t-take-the-kitsch-get-out-of-the-kitchen/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [Like our attitude to love, truth and goodness, we seem to be confident about knowing what beauty is - certain, even dogmatic - until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/like-our-attitude-to-love-truth-and-goodness-we-seem-to-be-confident/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [If you look at any leaf on any tree branch, it's similar to but not exactly a repetition of the previous branch. So the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/if-you-look-at-any-leaf-on-any-tree-branch-it-s-similar-to-but-not/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [I do believe architecture, and all art, should be content-driven. It should have something to say beyond the sensational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/i-do-believe-architecture-and-all-art-should-be-content-driven-it/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [You have to believe in a placebo or it won't work, but if it works, it's obviously working in some indirect way, through feedback…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/you-have-to-believe-in-a-placebo-or-it-won-t-work-but-if-it-works-it/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [Cant you see, we are in a dialogue with the universe?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/cant-you-see-we-are-in-a-dialogue-with-the-universe/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [What is a garden if not a miniaturization and celebration, of the place we are in, the universe?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/what-is-a-garden-if-not-a-miniaturization-and-celebration-of-the/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [Beautiful people are always with us, as evolutionary psychologists and a trip to the news-stand confirm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/beautiful-people-are-always-with-us-as-evolutionary-psychologists-and/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [The cell is a city of production centres, each part working away like mad, and it's co-ordinated. Six trillion cells in a body -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/the-cell-is-a-city-of-production-centres-each-part-working-away-like/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [“There is an unalterable and widening gap between exterior and interior, symbol and content, form and function -a gap which is making the environment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/there-is-an-unalterable-and-widening-gap-between-exterior-and/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [The singular point of beautiful objects, and people, is that they are experienced not as parts, or ratios between cheekbones and chin, but as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/the-singular-point-of-beautiful-objects-and-people-is-that-they-are/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [What is the most interesting thing to people? Other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/what-is-the-most-interesting-thing-to-people-other-people/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [A sign to me is a one-liner, a symbol is very complex and my house is a series of symbols.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/a-sign-to-me-is-a-one-liner-a-symbol-is-very-complex-and-my-house-is/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [“Whereas art critics are ready to accept-indeed are looking for-the new fabrication of a consistent visual language, architectural critics, like the general public, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/whereas-art-critics-are-ready-to-accept-indeed-are-looking-for-the/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) > [“A recurrent theme of this book is that architects, fairly low in the chain of command and needing jobs, are prone to compromise with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/a-recurrent-theme-of-this-book-is-that-architects-fairly-low-in-the/) [Charles Jencks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) [Explore all 35 Charles Jencks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/) ## More Architecture quotes > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/) [Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/) > [I just think structure can make a book feel so much bigger. It's the architecture. You could use flimsy materials if you wanted to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jami-attenberg/i-just-think-structure-can-make-a-book-feel-so-much-bigger-it-s-the/) [Jami Attenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jami-attenberg/) > [When I am asked what I believe in, I say that I believe in architecture. Architecture is the mother of the arts. I like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-meier/when-i-am-asked-what-i-believe-in-i-say-that-i-believe-in/) [Richard Meier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-meier/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. Fentress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-w-fentress/) > [The essential functions of the mind consist in understanding and in inventing, in other words, in building up structures by structuring reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-essential-functions-of-the-mind-consist-in-understanding-and-in/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [London, from the architecture to the culture to the fashion to the accents, feels like it's a special place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-eazy/london-from-the-architecture-to-the-culture-to-the-fashion-to-the/) [G-Eazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-eazy/) > [A wiki works best where you're trying to answer a question that you can't easily pose, where there's not a natural structure that's known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ward-cunningham/a-wiki-works-best-where-you-re-trying-to-answer-a-question-that-you/) [Ward Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ward-cunningham/) > [Architecture is not a profession for the faint-hearted, the weak-willed, or the short-lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-filler/architecture-is-not-a-profession-for-the-faint-hearted-the-weak/) [Martin Filler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-filler/) > [As a result of reading science fiction when I was eight, I grew up with an interest in music, architecture, city planning, transportation, politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/as-a-result-of-reading-science-fiction-when-i-was-eight-i-grew-up/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Winning a competition in architecture is a ticket to oblivion. It's just an idea. Ninety-nine per cent never get built](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-libeskind/winning-a-competition-in-architecture-is-a-ticket-to-oblivion-it-s/) [Daniel Libeskind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-libeskind/) > [It's not so much about form versus functionality. Rather, it's about doing both and doing them a lot and doing them well-and that's how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-prince-ramus/it-s-not-so-much-about-form-versus-functionality-rather-it-s-about/) [Joshua Prince-Ramus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-prince-ramus/) > [Engineering, medicine, business, architecture and painting are concerned not with the necessary but with the contingent - not with how things are but with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-simon/engineering-medicine-business-architecture-and-painting-are-concerned/) [Herbert Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-simon/) [Browse all 3,013 Architecture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture in general suffered from not only being repetitive, but not explaining to the populous what the different rooms were for.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Jencks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-modern-architecture-in-general/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Architecture" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-modern-architecture-in-general/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/charles-jencks-18110_architecture_mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-mod_2195507.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Mies van der Rohe's architecture and modern architecture in general suffered from not only being repetitive…” — Charles Jencks", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charles Jencks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-jencks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Mies van der Rohe's architecture and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-modern-architecture-in-general/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-jencks/mies-van-der-rohe-s-architecture-and-modern-architecture-in-general/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```