Karl Friedrich Schinkel

Architecture German 1781 – 1841 101 quotes

A Prussian architect, city planner, and painter who designed many prominent buildings in Berlin, including the Altes Museum.

Quotes by Karl Friedrich Schinkel

Architecture is the art of building beautifully.

Various writings 1830

The purpose of art is to elevate the spirit.

Lectures 1820

Every building should be a poem in stone.

Letters 1825

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

Aphorisms 1830

Form follows function, but beauty follows both.

Essays 1835

The architect must be a poet, a painter, and a sculptor.

Lectures 1828

True art is always modern.

Reflections 1832

Light is the most important element in architecture.

Treatise on Architecture 1827

A building should speak to the soul.

Letters 1829

The highest aim of art is to express the divine.

Philosophical writings 1833

Nature is the greatest teacher of all.

Personal reflections 1820

Every detail matters.

Instructional notes 1830

Architecture is frozen music.

Attributed, possibly from Goethe but popularized by Schinkel 1825

The past is a guide, not a prison.

Essays 1835

To build well is to serve humanity.

Lectures 1828

The spirit of an age is reflected in its buildings.

Historical observations 1831

Harmony is the essence of beauty.

Aesthetic principles 1826

An architect must understand the human condition.

Professional observations 1829

The true artist creates not for himself, but for the world.

Philosophical writings 1834

Great architecture is timeless.

Reflections 1830