Building your own house is a primal urge, one of those universal genetic drives like the need to provide for your family.

Architecture was pretty much the sexiest thing to be doing from 1700-1800.

Sustainability is now a big baggy sack in which people throw all kinds of old ideas, hot air and dodgy activities in order to be able to greenwash their products and feel good.

I don't enjoy living in a white box flooded with light. I like shadows, small spaces, old furniture.

I have a recurring nightmare that I wake up in a gutter with nothing. I've had it all my life. That's why I work, I think.

I don't want anything that I buy to have done any harm to anyone or anything.

Life involves other people and it is a compromise.

I spend a frightening amount of money on books.

Generally speaking, I think that if you do anything with commitment and passion, it will come good.

Living an environmentally responsible lifestyle can seem like a Scrooge-like list of don'ts. Don't take that flight, don't buy that car, don't eat those blueberries flown in from somewhere far-flung.

I admire anyone that follows the road less travelled.

I cannot look at modern buildings without thinking of historical ones.

Awesome is loud but awe is quiet.

Every decently-made object, from a house to a lamp post to a bridge, spoon or egg cup, is not just a piece of 'stuff' but a physical embodiment of human energy, testimony to the magical ability of our species to take raw materials and turn them into things of use, value and beauty.

I've got a farm in Somerset, and I think it's God's own country. I love it.