ABSTRACT
ARCHITECTS NEED CONSTRAINTS to exercise their creativity. At least, that has been our experience in practice and in education. Whilst this seems to fly in the face of a popular myth that true creativity is only possible when we have a ‘free hand’ to play in an uninhibited manner, most architects we know would break into a cold sweat if awarded a commission with a carte blanche brief. The Germans have a phrase that sums this up well: ‘Wenn ein Architekt nichts weiss, dann macht er einen Kreis [If an architect doesn’t know anything, then he draws a circle]’. 1
