I was also interested in the play of light, and the relationship of the house to the garden. In contrast, contemporary Japanese urban architecture can be extremely exhilarating - practically the opposite of the first two buildings discussed as there is no calmness nor any relationship to green. But there is a dynamic and vital quality - Japanese verticality is a very striking feature. In Western cities, buildings are much wider thus having far less grain and scale. However in Japan, the buildings are thin and vertical as is the writing system, which allows the eye to continue down a road from place to place, creating a cityscape that is full of vitality.
Cities provide a meeting place and a command centre for both economic and cultural activity.
The battle we have is to create a better quality of life for the majority of people who live here and to maintain the vitality. The Centre Pompidou We tried to capture this vitality when we designed Beaubourg, more commonly known as the Centre Pompidou. The electronic age is extremely exciting and what the building tries to portray is a dynamic facade with electronics that communicate a link with art centres, cultural centres, and information centres throughout the world. It is an information centre for all people of all ages and creeds. The Centre Pompidou is not made out of departments but is an overall cultural space.