So I went for engineering, specifically product design, which I enjoyed.

When I started this project, I was a young architect. I was very apprehensive about any changes to the design. Whether I wanted to or not, I learned that you can accept some changes to its form without compromising its intent. But it's a leap of faith that I didn't want to make initially - to put it mildly.

For two years nobody talked about anything other than the name arrangement. There was no fund-raising and no progress being made on construction and design.

How do you design it so that people can form a space of their own, and feel quiet and contemplative?

I really appreciate artists of the 20th century, and I can see a lot of their influence on my work, but to suggest that my design only fits within an 'ism' kind of bothers me.

I used to design for my body, which was flat-chested with big hips. That's why my clothes were tight on top with full skirts.

We have no general conceptual thrust for the band, other than trying to make music that keeps our interest. When things are novel, they are probably things we have discovered by accident or investigation rather than by design.

Initially, it was the unpractical in fashion that brought me to design my own line. I felt that it was much more attractive to cut clothes with respect for the living, three-dimensional body rather than to cover the body with decorative ideas.

I think there is always a need for pure design. With pure design, you don't need so much decoration.

It may sound ambitious, but I really hope that modern design will spread all around the globe.