Chapter 1 of 26
Oscar Niemeyer
I would like to speak in English, it would be more natural and beautiful, but it's very difficult for me. I have to speak in Portuguese to make very clear my idea. But I can tell you something that happened to me years ago. I was in front of the Doge's Palace in Venice, and I looked this Palace so beautiful, no? - and see that the columns are so beautiful, so elaborated, supporting the big hall, and very simple, no? And I was enthused with the contrast of the columns, so elaborate, with the closed wall that they support. And I think to write a sort of dialogue, as if I was speaking with another architect. And in this dialogue I ask him "what do you think about this Palace?" and he answers "It's wonderful". "But what do you think about the columns?" He says "They're marvellous". But you don't think that the columns can be more simple and functional? And he says "Ah, naturally". But I say "Let's see, if the columns could be more simple and functional, we'll lose the contrast between these columns so rich and the facade?" And he says "Ah, that's true". And this shows that when the form, the architectural form goes to beauty and contrast, they have a function, they are functional.