Young man in architecture: it would be well for you to have the philosophy of your own art well in hand. Foolish imitation, servile copying from architects of the past, and this eager rush to make money will be your failure if you do not guard against them. I advise you to study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. Nature will never fail you. It is your great teacher.
I say to you that the young architect should learn to think for himself and be the individual he is. He must learn to see life as it is — not as teachers of the past have taught him. He should cherish his own ideals, be his own man, and know what he knows. He should learn to draw, for drawing is the language of the architect. The architect who cannot draw is like the composer who cannot play any instrument.
Learn the art of simplicity. Strip the design of every unnecessary element. The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization. Architecture is the triumph of human imagination over materials, methods, and men, to put man into possession of his own earth.
Study the great buildings of the past — not to copy them, but to understand the principles by which they came into being. The principles of Egyptian, Greek, Gothic, and Eastern architecture hold lessons more valuable than their forms. Principles are the lifeblood of all good architectural design; forms are its mere clothing. Forget the forms but keep the principles — and you will create forms of your own, worthy of your own time.
Above all, integrity. The word "integrity" in architecture means much the same as it does in ethics. What is true in building is what is natural to the materials, natural to the purpose, natural to the method. Have a sincere regard for the nature of the materials you use, and they will serve you well. Wood wants to be wood; stone wants to be stone; concrete wants to be concrete. Each material has its own message; let it speak.
The architect's best friend is the T-square and the triangle. His worst enemies are slavish imitation and the desire to be fashionable. To be truly creative, one must not fear being different. The genuine architect does not follow fashion; he creates it. He does not imitate; he originates. He does not decorate; he expresses. He does not conceal; he reveals.
Be patient. Architecture is a slow art. A building may take years to complete, but if it is done honestly and faithfully to principle, it will stand when the fashions of the day have passed away. The architecture that lasts is the architecture that is true to its own nature, true to the nature of its materials, and true to the needs of its time.
Go to work, young man. The field is as fertile as it ever was. But remember: an architect's greatest work is the work he does on himself.