--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I pick up my pen. It flows. A building…" description: "\"I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it is. There is nothing more to say.\" — Oscar Niemeyer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png" --- # I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it… ![“I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it is. There is nothing more to say.” quote by Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png) > “I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it is. There is nothing more to say.” [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The act of writing creates a tangible form, completing the creative process in a single, decisive moment. **In simple terms:** Writing materializes ideas instantly. Key Takeaway Embrace decisive creation. Themes creativity expression completion Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing a story - designing a building - sketching a concept Key Concepts architectural metaphor creative flow Questions to Reflect On - What does the finished work mean to you? - How does immediacy affect quality? A Different Perspective The moment may feel fleeting, but depth can be lost without reflection. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Flow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flow/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [It is all very well, when the pen flows, but then there are the dark days when imagination deserts one, and it is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-aston/it-is-all-very-well-when-the-pen-flows-but-then-there-are-the-dark/) [Elizabeth Aston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-aston/) > [The church of St. Peter at Berlin, notwithstanding the total difference between them in the style of building, appears in some respects to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-philipp-moritz/the-church-of-st-peter-at-berlin-notwithstanding-the-total-difference/) [Karl Philipp Moritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-philipp-moritz/) > [Pick up my pen and start to write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faithless/pick-up-my-pen-and-start-to-write/) [Faithless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faithless/) > [If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/if-you-want-to-change-the-world-pick-up-your-pen-and-write/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [My books flow. People say they pick them up and they can't put them down. It's because when I'm writing them I pick my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-collins/my-books-flow-people-say-they-pick-them-up-and-they-can-t-put-them/) [Jackie Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-collins/) > [When you wake up, instead of checking emails on your phone, or counting your retweets, pick up a pen and scratch a few sentences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-barry/when-you-wake-up-instead-of-checking-emails-on-your-phone-or-counting/) [Kevin Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-barry/) > [“I pick up a pen and start to unscrew the whole thing, pull out the skinny little tube of blue ink. It would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-pick-up-a-pen-and-start-to-unscrew-the-whole-thing-pull-out-the/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Do not pick up the pen unless you understand how heavy it is, and how long you may carry it for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-ellis/do-not-pick-up-the-pen-unless-you-understand-how-heavy-it-is-and-how/) [Jason Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-ellis/) > [What happens to us all, I think, when we pick up a pen, is that we just become snobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-hansard/what-happens-to-us-all-i-think-when-we-pick-up-a-pen-is-that-we-just/) [Glen Hansard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-hansard/) > [“People who are prone to sadness are more likely to pick up a pen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lang-leav/people-who-are-prone-to-sadness-are-more-likely-to-pick-up-a-pen/) [Lang Leav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lang-leav/) > [Of course, I have given my engineers some headaches over the years, but they go with me. I have always wanted my buildings to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/of-course-i-have-given-my-engineers-some-headaches-over-the-years-but/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [A day which passed without a poem from my pen I considered lost and misused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-wheeler-wilcox/a-day-which-passed-without-a-poem-from-my-pen-i-considered-lost-and/) [Ella Wheeler Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-wheeler-wilcox/) > [I was taking all prints and I brought them to the Magnum meetings, trying the old Josef Koudelka trick: Give them to photographers, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-van-agtmael/i-was-taking-all-prints-and-i-brought-them-to-the-magnum-meetings/) [Peter van Agtmael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-van-agtmael/) > [For me, the melancholy of the late XXth Century is walking late at night by the Mont Blanc pen store and seeing these things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/for-me-the-melancholy-of-the-late-xxth-century-is-walking-late-at/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/) Brian Reade ## More by Oscar Niemeyer > [Of course, I have given my engineers some headaches over the years, but they go with me. I have always wanted my buildings to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/of-course-i-have-given-my-engineers-some-headaches-over-the-years-but/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Surprise is key in all art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/surprise-is-key-in-all-art/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Architecture is my work, and I've spent my whole life at a drawing board, but life is more important than architecture. What matters is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/architecture-is-my-work-and-i-ve-spent-my-whole-life-at-a-drawing/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Camus says in 'The Stranger' that reason is the enemy of imagination. Sometimes you have to put reason aside and make something beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/camus-says-in-the-stranger-that-reason-is-the-enemy-of-imagination/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [I had some good opportunities. I was lucky to have had the chance to do things differently. Architecture is about surprise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-had-some-good-opportunities-i-was-lucky-to-have-had-the-chance-to/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [There is no reason to design buildings that are more basic and rectilinear, because with concrete you can cover almost any space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/there-is-no-reason-to-design-buildings-that-are-more-basic-and/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Today, architecture is invention. It isn't enough to just be rational - It must also be beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/today-architecture-is-invention-it-isn-t-enough-to-just-be-rational/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [I search for surprise in my architecture. A work of art should cause the emotion of newness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-search-for-surprise-in-my-architecture-a-work-of-art-should-cause/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Right angles don't attract me. Nor straight, hard and inflexible lines created by man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/right-angles-don-t-attract-me-nor-straight-hard-and-inflexible-lines/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [The challenge of a cathedral is very good for architectural inventiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/the-challenge-of-a-cathedral-is-very-good-for-architectural/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [My work is not about 'form follows function,' but 'form follows beauty' or, even better, 'form follows feminine.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/my-work-is-not-about-form-follows-function-but-form-follows-beauty-or/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Architecture was my way of expressing my ideals: to be simple, to create a world equal to everyone, to look at people with optimism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/architecture-was-my-way-of-expressing-my-ideals-to-be-simple-to/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Here, then, is what I wanted to tell you of my architecture. I created it with courage and idealism, but also with an awareness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/here-then-is-what-i-wanted-to-tell-you-of-my-architecture-i-created/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [Architecture is invention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/architecture-is-invention/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [A church is something very beautiful. It is nice when people feel happy in it. But I am not a religious man. Look at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/a-church-is-something-very-beautiful-it-is-nice-when-people-feel/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) [Explore all 52 Oscar Niemeyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) ## More Building quotes > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [Absolutely, you can improve and become better at toughness. It's a talent, but it can be acquired, too. I think of it like building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/absolutely-you-can-improve-and-become-better-at-toughness-it-s-a/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'd like to play Ian Paisley, actually. I'd need building up, though he's very frail now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-neeson/i-d-like-to-play-ian-paisley-actually-i-d-need-building-up-though-he/) [Liam Neeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-neeson/) > [Death is but an aspect of life, and the destruction of one material form is but a prelude to building up of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/death-is-but-an-aspect-of-life-and-the-destruction-of-one-material/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [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/) > [As for the forces, electromagnetism and gravity we experience in everyday life. But the weak and strong forces are beyond our ordinary experience. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-witten/as-for-the-forces-electromagnetism-and-gravity-we-experience-in/) [Edward Witten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-witten/) > [I'm 30. I'm about to hit my prime now. I need to act and keep building.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillian-whyte/i-m-30-i-m-about-to-hit-my-prime-now-i-need-to-act-and-keep-building/) [Dillian Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillian-whyte/) > [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/) > [Practically every time I speak up at a school conference, a political event, or my apartment building association's annual meeting, I'm met with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/practically-every-time-i-speak-up-at-a-school-conference-a-political/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) Browse all 5,974 Building quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it is. There is nothing more to say.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oscar Niemeyer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-appears-there-it-is-there-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Building" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-appears-there-it-is-there-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/oscar-niemeyer-12939_building_i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-app_882388.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I pick up my pen. It flows. A building appears. There it is. There is nothing more to say.” — Oscar Niemeyer", "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": "Oscar Niemeyer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I pick up my pen. It...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-appears-there-it-is-there-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/i-pick-up-my-pen-it-flows-a-building-appears-there-it-is-there-is/#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 } } ] } ```