21 Quotes & Sayings By Arthur Erickson

Arthur Erickson was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on February 12, 1911. He studied architecture at the Ontario Institute of Technology and received his degree in 1933. He worked as a draftsman for several architectural firms before establishing his own practice in Winnipeg. In 1937, he designed his own house on 2 acres of land and continued to practice architecture for the next eight years Read more

During this time, he developed a deep appreciation for nature and became convinced that human beings could not live without an awareness of their surroundings. His work and ideas developed into a new form of architecture called "ecodelic." In 1942, Erickson moved to Toronto to study the works of Frank Lloyd Wright and came back to Winnipeg in 1945 with plans to establish himself as a full-time architect. During the war years, he had met Helen Louise Wilson, who became his wife in 1946.

Together they established the firm of Arthur E. Erickson & Associates in 1949. Arthur built his own home on a twelve acre property near Stonewall, Manitoba, with a view of the old trading post which is now a museum.

In 1953, he graduated from the Canadian National Institute of Architecture with a Master's Degree in architecture and began work on what would later become known as the Erickson Home for Living Wellness and Education at Stonewall. In 1959, Erickson established himself as one of Canada's foremost architects by designing the Canada Centre for Inclusive Education at Mount Royal College in Calgary. The building was recognized internationally as an example of ecodelic architecture He was also involved with the design of the University of Manitoba's Fine Arts Building (1963), University College at Western University (1969), and York University (1988). In 1969 he published his first book, "The Human Equation: A New Design for Life." This book described what he believed were the seven basic needs that humans have as they move from birth through death: safety, security, acceptance, love/belongingness, esteem/esteem, recognition/appreciation and education/enlightenment In 1972 he wrote "The Success Equation: Winning Through People," exploring how people could be used effectively to create success.

The book documented his attempts to develop an effective system for leadership development through people which enabled individuals to remain true to their true selves while reaching their true potential. He expanded this concept into his next book "People Unlimited" (1977) which presented the principles that would allow people to be more

Inspiration in Science may have to do with ideas, but...
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Inspiration in Science may have to do with ideas, but not in Art. In art it is in the senses that are instinctively responsive to the medium of expression. Arthur Erickson
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After 1980, you never heard reference to space again. Surface, the most convincing evidence of the descent into materialism, became the focus of design. Space disappeared. Arthur Erickson
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Life is rich always changing always challenging and we architects have the task of transmitting into wood concrete glass and steel of transforming human aspirations into habitable and meaningful space. Arthur Erickson
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There is a single thread of attitude, a single direction of flow, that joins our present time to its early burgeoning in Mediterranean civilization. Arthur Erickson
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Part of our western outlook stems from the scientific attitude and its method of isolating the parts of a phenomenon in order to analyze them. Arthur Erickson
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Space has always been the spiritual dimension of architecture. It is not the physical statement of the structure so much as what it contains that moves us. Arthur Erickson
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We are stymied by regulations, limited choice and the threat of litigation. Neither consultants nor industry itself provide research which takes architecture forward. Arthur Erickson
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Great buildings that move the spirit have always been rare. In every case they are unique, poetic, products of the heart. Arthur Erickson
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Whenever we witness art in a building, we are aware of an energy contained by it. Arthur Erickson
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Architecture doesn't come from theory. You don't think your way through a building. Arthur Erickson
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Rationalism is the enemy of art, though necessary as a basis for architecture. Arthur Erickson
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The details are the very source of expression in architecture. But we are caught in a vice between art and the bottom line. Arthur Erickson
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Vitality is radiated from exceptional art and architecture. Arthur Erickson
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Does an architecture to assuage the spirit have a place? Arthur Erickson
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The new architecture of transparency and lightness comes from Japan and Europe. Arthur Erickson
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The way of architecture is the quiet voice that underlies it and has guided it from the beginning. Arthur Erickson
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Today's developer is a poor substitute for the committed entrepreneur of the last century for whom the work of architecture represented a chance to celebrate the worth of his enterprise. Arthur Erickson
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No wonder the film industry started in the desert in California where, like all desert dwellers, they dream their buildings, rather than design them. Arthur Erickson
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With production alone as the goal, industry in North America was dominated by the assembly line, standardization for mass consumption. Arthur Erickson
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Modernism released us from the constraints of everything that had gone before with a euphoric sense of freedom. Arthur Erickson