--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Architects mostly work for privileged…" description: "\"Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power, Power and money are invisible, so people hire us to visualize their powe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/154/shigeru-ban-40341_architect_architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-pe_20289.jpg" --- # Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who… ![“Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power, Power and money are invisible, so people hire us to visualize their power and money by making monumental architecture. I love to make monuments, too, but I thought perhaps we can use our experience and knowledge more…” quote by Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/154/shigeru-ban-40341_architect_architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-pe_20289.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/154/shigeru-ban-40341_architect_architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-pe_20289.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/154/shigeru-ban-40341_architect_architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-pe_20289.jpg) > “Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power, Power and money are invisible, so people hire us to visualize their power and money by making monumental architecture. I love to make monuments, too, but I thought perhaps we can use our experience and knowledge more for the general public, even for those who have lost their houses in natural disasters.” [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how architecture often serves elite interests by materializing power and wealth, while urging architects to apply their expertise to aid broader society, especially disaster victims. **In simple terms:** Architecture can serve both elite symbolism and public welfare. Key Takeaway Architects should balance prestige projects with humanitarian work. Themes social responsibility power dynamics humanitarian design public good architectural ethics Mood reflective hopeful critical Type opinion call to action observation When to use this quote - designing civic landmarks - rebuilding after floods - creating community shelters - consulting for NGOs - participating in public policy Key Concepts visualization of power monumentality disaster relief sustainable materials Practical Applications - pro bono disaster reconstruction - designing affordable public spaces Questions to Reflect On - How can architects measure impact beyond aesthetics? - What incentives could shift focus toward public service? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Architect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architect/) [Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [General public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general-public/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Money and power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money-and-power/) [Monument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monument/) [Natural disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-disaster/) [Natural disasters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-disasters/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [“Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power,” Ban said recently. “Power and money are invisible, so people hire us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-people-people-who-have-money-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Of our hurts we make monuments of survival. If we survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/of-our-hurts-we-make-monuments-of-survival-if-we-survive/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [People are quick to make monuments of anything they live long enough to control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilton-als/people-are-quick-to-make-monuments-of-anything-they-live-long-enough/) [Hilton Als](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilton-als/) > [Architects work in two ways. One is to respond precisely to a client's needs or demands. Another is to look at what the client…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rem-koolhaas/architects-work-in-two-ways-one-is-to-respond-precisely-to-a-client-s/) [Rem Koolhaas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rem-koolhaas/) > [Most architects work in studios largely divorced from academia, as if ideas, criticism and historical research were irrelevant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chipperfield/most-architects-work-in-studios-largely-divorced-from-academia-as-if/) [David Chipperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chipperfield/) > [I have worked with some horrible idiots in my life. You learn the pattern of how architects work and the thing is not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-hulanicki/i-have-worked-with-some-horrible-idiots-in-my-life-you-learn-the/) [Barbara Hulanicki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-hulanicki/) > [Often, architects work too hard trying to make their buildings look different. It's like we're actors let loose on a stage, all speaking our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chipperfield/often-architects-work-too-hard-trying-to-make-their-buildings-look/) [David Chipperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chipperfield/) > [If we are to believe or accept that buildings are cultural markers, if architects work in a vacuum with their own preconceptions about society,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-clewes/if-we-are-to-believe-or-accept-that-buildings-are-cultural-markers-if/) [Peter Clewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-clewes/) > [“Despite their claims to a purely scientific and reasoned approach, the relationship of Modernist architects to their work remained at base a romantic one;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/despite-their-claims-to-a-purely-scientific-and-reasoned-approach-the/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [All around the country, individuals are choosing to redefine their lives and the pursuit of happiness in ways much closer to the original notion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/all-around-the-country-individuals-are-choosing-to-redefine-their/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [According to the politics of fantasy, mankind is on the verge of perfectibility, if only we give the government just a little bit more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-knowles/according-to-the-politics-of-fantasy-mankind-is-on-the-verge-of/) [Michael J. Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-knowles/) > [When government does, occasionally, work, it works in an elitist fashion. That is, government is most easily manipulated by people who have money and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/when-government-does-occasionally-work-it-works-in-an-elitist-fashion/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [“For years, Asha had hoped that her daughter wouldn’t guess about the men. Now she wished she had raised Manju to be worldly enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-boo/for-years-asha-had-hoped-that-her-daughter-wouldn-t-guess-about-the/) [Katherine Boo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-boo/) > [Money comes and goes. I'm thankful I have money. I'm trying to save up more. I would like more money. But it's not happiness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/money-comes-and-goes-i-m-thankful-i-have-money-i-m-trying-to-save-up/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [“To live the lives we truly want and deserve, and not just the lives we settle for, we need a Third Metric, a third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/to-live-the-lives-we-truly-want-and-deserve-and-not-just-the-lives-we/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) ## More by Shigeru Ban > [I believe that the material doesn’t need to be strong to be used to build a strong structure. The strength of the structure has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/i-believe-that-the-material-doesn-t-need-to-be-strong-to-be-used-to/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [The most important thing, in order to forge one's own creative personality, is to travel, to see different environments, different cultures. I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/the-most-important-thing-in-order-to-forge-one-s-own-creative/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [Architecture is not about designing somehting from a free, fanciful idea. It is about discovering and establishing one's own principle, some kind of regularity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/architecture-is-not-about-designing-somehting-from-a-free-fanciful/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [Everyone used to want to be star architects. That's no longer the case.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/everyone-used-to-want-to-be-star-architects-that-s-no-longer-the-case/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [I did a lot of tests, and I finalized my research. Paper has become a part of my visual vocabulary. You know, paper is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/i-did-a-lot-of-tests-and-i-finalized-my-research-paper-has-become-a/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [I'm not inventing anything new, I'm just using existing material differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/i-m-not-inventing-anything-new-i-m-just-using-existing-material/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [People are not killed by earthquakes alone, but by collapsed buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/people-are-not-killed-by-earthquakes-alone-but-by-collapsed-buildings/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [For me, there's no difference between what's temporary and what's definitive. I built the church in Kobe, which was supposed to be temporary, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/for-me-there-s-no-difference-between-what-s-temporary-and-what-s/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [An architect does not need to spend his whole career making monuments for rich people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/an-architect-does-not-need-to-spend-his-whole-career-making-monuments/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [I travel a lot. Japanese culture is very ancient and very strong. That's why most people who commission work from Japanese architects expect them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/i-travel-a-lot-japanese-culture-is-very-ancient-and-very-strong-that/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) [Explore all 11 Shigeru Ban quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) ## More Architect quotes > [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/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [When it comes to getting things done, we need fewer architects and more bricklayers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-it-comes-to-getting-things-done-we-need-fewer-architects-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was the chairman of the Budget Committee and the lead architect the last time it happened in Washington, and when we did it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kasich/i-was-the-chairman-of-the-budget-committee-and-the-lead-architect-the/) [John Kasich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kasich/) > [The architect is very interesting because the architect is the commander, meaning the one who commands all the workers. The architect is also the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-architect-is-very-interesting-because-the-architect-is-the/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [The pursuit of peace resembles the building of a great cathedral. It is the work of a generation. In concept it requires a mater-architect;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/the-pursuit-of-peace-resembles-the-building-of-a-great-cathedral-it/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [Yes, Garnett Grey was an Architect. Were a psychoanalyst to approach him from behind, tap his shoulder, and say 'Humanity,' Garrett'd spin and respond,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-kidd/yes-garnett-grey-was-an-architect-were-a-psychoanalyst-to-approach/) [Chip Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-kidd/) > [The challenge of today's generation of architects is the environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-ross-barney/the-challenge-of-today-s-generation-of-architects-is-the-environment/) [Carol Ross Barney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-ross-barney/) > [I stand on this rostrum with a sense of deep humility and great pride - humility in the weight of those great American architects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/i-stand-on-this-rostrum-with-a-sense-of-deep-humility-and-great-pride/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [Architects in the past have tended to concentrate their attention on the building as a static object. I believe dynamics are more important: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/architects-in-the-past-have-tended-to-concentrate-their-attention-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was the chairman of the House Budget Committee and one of the chief architects the last time we balanced a budget, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kasich/i-was-the-chairman-of-the-house-budget-committee-and-one-of-the-chief/) [John Kasich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kasich/) > [No matter what an architect may be at home, he becomes a monumentalist when he comes to Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-louise-huxtable/no-matter-what-an-architect-may-be-at-home-he-becomes-a-monumentalist/) [Ada Louise Huxtable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-louise-huxtable/) > [As an architect you design for the present, with an awareness of the past, for a future which is essentially unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-foster/as-an-architect-you-design-for-the-present-with-an-awareness-of-the/) [Norman Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-foster/) > [Ballybunion is the course on which many golf architects should live and play on before they build golf courses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-watson/ballybunion-is-the-course-on-which-many-golf-architects-should-live/) [Tom Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-watson/) [Browse all 836 Architect quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architect/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power, Power and money are invisible, so people hire us to visualize their power and money by making monumental architecture. 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