Christopher Alexander

Quotes

• “A thing is whole according to how free it is of inner contradictions. When it is at war with itself, and gives rise to forces which act to tear it down, it is unwhole. The more free it is of its own inner contradictions, the more whole and healthy and wholehearted it becomes.”

• “One begins to think with that new building block, rather than with littler pieces. And finally, the things which seem like elements dissolve, and leave a fabric of relationships behind, which is the stuff that actually repeats itself, and gives the structure to a building or a town.”

• “Nothing which is not simple and direct can survive the slow transmision from person to person.”

• “In my life as an architect, I found that the single thing which inhibits young professionals, new students most severely, is their acceptance of standards that are too low.”

Books by Christopher Alexander in order

Books by Christopher Alexander in the order they were published, from The Design of Highway Interchanges (1962) to The Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth (2012).

1. 1The Design of Highway InterchangesThe Design of Highway Interchanges1962
2. 2The Use of Diagrams in Highway Route LocationThe Use of Diagrams in Highway Route Location1962
3. 3Hidecs 3Hidecs 31963
4. 4Notes on the Synthesis of FormNotes on the Synthesis of Form1964
5. 5The Atoms of Environmental StructureThe Atoms of Environmental Structure1966
6. 6The City as a Mechanism for Sustaining Human ContactThe City as a Mechanism for Sustaining Human Contact1966
7. 7The Coordination of the Urban Rule SystemThe Coordination of the Urban Rule System1966
8. 8A Pattern Language Which Generates Multi-service CentersA Pattern Language Which Generates Multi-service Centers1968
9. 9A Pattern LanguageA Pattern Language1977
10. 10The Timeless Way of BuildingThe Timeless Way of Building1979
11. 11The Linz CafeThe Linz Cafe1981
12. 12The Production of HousesThe Production of Houses1985
13. 13A New Theory of Urban DesignA New Theory of Urban Design1987
14. 14A Foreshadowing of 21st Century ArtA Foreshadowing of 21st Century Art1993
15. 15The Mary Rose MuseumThe Mary Rose Museum1995
16. 16The Nature of OrderThe Nature of Order2001
17. 17A Vision of a Living WorldA Vision of a Living World2002
18. 18The Luminous GroundThe Luminous Ground2003
19. 19TunisiaTunisia2004
20. 20The Battle for the Life and Beauty of the EarthThe Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth2012