Odile Decq

"When I was preparing the new school of architecture, I got into a discussion with a group of friends, most of them architects, about some fundamental questions: what do we mean by a school of architecture, what do we mean by an architectural education, and how can we better adapt architectural education to the conditions of the world today? The world has changed a lot this century, mainly because of vast expansion of computing power. Students who are now choosing to study architecture grew up in a digital world. But education at most architectural schools is still rooted in the 19th century, and sometimes in the 20th century, but certainly not in the 21st century."

"My generation was born after Second World War and was determined to change the world. It was changing already but we wanted it to change faster. However, today's youngest generation are told by their parents that the world will never be as nice as it was for them. They tend to think negatively about their future. They are concerned about issues like global warming and gender equality, but they often lack the determination or the confidence to do something about it. I want to stimulate them to have courage. That is why I tell my students that I am jealous of them: they have a century ahead of them which they can shape according to their dreams."

"The Académie des Beaux-Arts teaches that architecture is the mother of all arts, but in my opinion it is much more than that. It goes beyond designing objects, for it is also about sociology, politics, geography, economics, law etc. As architects, we are confronted with all these disciplines in every project. We need to know precisely what the conditions of a project are. We have to bring these disciplines together into a synthesis that addresses all the relevant issues. This synthesis generates an idea, and this idea is the project. The idea is more than the building, because it deals with all the scales involved from the smallest details to the urban space. That is why I consider the architectural discipline as unique. It can help a company to reorganize itself, or it can help a city to function better. It can really change the world."