Alessandra Orlandoni – It’s just like Matrix Reloaded; I opened the door and found myself in a different world. There’s a red laser in the toilet…
Ron Arad – When it’s occupied, everybody knows because the red light is on. So we avoid going to the toilet.
A.O. – Of course. You were born in Israel and moved to London to study at the Architectural Association in the early seventies. Your teachers were Bernard Tschumi and Peter Cook. One of your fellow students was Zaha Hadid. Why did you choose London and the A.A.?
R.A. – Should I give you an answer?
A.O. – Well, yes. I suppose. We are doing an interview: I ask questions and you give me answers. That’s how it works, generally…
R.A. - I don’t know, honestly. I don’t know. Young people move and travel. Wherever else in the world? The A.A. was considered the best school of architecture in the world. We always choose the best, of course – Isn’t the music too loud? Please switch the music off! – Whether that was true or not, we’ll never know. That was how it was considered.
A.O. – Do you think that ambience helped you to increase your talent? Did it influence your career?
R.A. – I only have one life, and I cannot compare it with any other possible life. I can’t imagine if I had gone to Milan and met Achille Castiglioni or Enzo Mari, for instance, what would have happened. Or if I had gone to the USA…I don’t know. I think I met the people I met and I did what I did and that’s it.
A.O. – Did you already have any idea about your future as an architect? Have you accomplished what you set out to do?
R.A. – You can only be in one place at one time, right? So I didn’t make a proper decision. I found myself here and I developed here. If you now look at all of that, so it was...
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Saucier + Perrotte in Ontario
Saucier + Perrotte Architectes
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Zaha Hadid Architects
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