Architects, Lawyers and Prostitutes

10 November 2005 | Category: Architecture Debates

Came across this quote from the blog Housebuilder’s Update , while reading the blog, the title of the post “What is it with architects and contracts?” caught my attention, and I just got to blog about it. So, what is your opinion on the issue?

Whenever you see the word “Client” in something to do with building, you know there just has to be an architect involved because no one else in the building game ever refers to anyone as “clients.” It is such a strange word, isn’t it? In a shop you are a customer, on a train you are a passenger, in a hospital you are a patient, in a class you are a student, in the economy at large you’d be a consumer. But client? The only people who have clients are lawyers, architects and prostitutes, all of whom have to live with the reputation that they are simply out to screw you. Only the prostitute is honest about it.”

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10 Comments

  1. Becki
    on July 9th, 2007
    1

    how true…I have never met an architect that was honest and actually worked for their buck. Normally, they ride the fence of “the owner is stupid or the contractor screwed it up”. Architects NEVER assume responsibility for their own mistakes and misrepresentations. Interior designers are even worse because they recommend all this crap material that is normally expensive and difficult to find. And when the contractor who has years of experience in actually building something, makes the comment that the drawing is not going to work, the architect becomes the diva with the “I designed it so make it work attitude”. But when the materials that the architect demands, starts to fail…who is to blame? The architect points at the owner for excepting the drawing and then at the contractor for following the drawings. The architect is totally blameless, don’t look at me I just drew it…. Aren’t architects great?

  2. John
    on July 20th, 2007
    2

    That is what happen if you don’t understand the written contract between ‘Owners, Architect, & Contractor’. If you are not good in technical magic you need a lawyer.

  3. jamesgeorgeinedu2
    on September 26th, 2007
    3

    architects are very lazy. drawings are never complete, ideas and arguments follow different streams… what we call architecture today is the 10% disaster that will lead to our extinction. (10% is the usual fee in my country.)thank you for pointing out the madness within…

  4. Javier
    on October 1st, 2007
    4

    Well on the answer quote… most designers have “clients” not just architectural designers. Just so you know.

  5. mai
    on November 13th, 2007
    5

    lazy?! ha i take it you know alot of architects then?(!) only if you did you’d know they are the hardest working people around. what they do is just incredibly time consuming

  6. Jason
    on December 1st, 2007
    6

    In my experience only poor contractors say things like this. They’re pissed that architects do their job and hold standards. It cuts into the contractors miller time.

  7. Alan
    on January 2nd, 2008
    7

    I have this impression you hate architecture/architects?! lol why are you studying it then?

  8. Ronald Butaran
    on May 3rd, 2008
    8

    Lazy Architects? Do they exist? I think not, you can’t be an architect if you are lazy, yeah it should count then, Even an architecture student can’t be considered as lazy monkey. It’s just that architectural work are different from all other works since it is a science of everything, 100% considerations and 100% decision making, so if I were you, try to estimate the number of working drawing that are needed to finish a single structure, let see!

  9. hendra
    on May 7th, 2008
    9

    LAZY ?, I don’t think so, they (Architecs) were spend a lot of time to work, to serve client and so have stisfied. Designing is very currious & unify so many needs or demand through a long process I think.
    Architecture is poetry, and as a poetry it must be contemplated very well to understend.
    It’s right ?

  10. Jon
    on May 12th, 2008
    10

    Architects are not lazy… They are just dumb enough to trust the wannabe architects right out of college to write thier specs and screw up the plans. The real problem is that “real architects” are spread thin, at-least in the region I work in. It is just disappointing that they allow these mistakes to take place and then try to justify it. Ambiguity is the biggest crock o sh#t I deal with everyday. Say what you mean! And for the last time Architects… STOP MIXING PERFORMANCE AND DESIGN SPECS…..

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