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A scribble by Wim Wenders for his 3-D film on the Rolex Center at EPF in Lausanne, 2010.

If Buildings Could Talk...

... some of them would sound like Shakespeare.
Others would speak like the Financial Times,
yet others would praise God, or Allah.
Some would just whisper,
some would loudly sing their own praises,
while others would modestly mumble a few words
and really have nothing to say.
Some are plain dead and don't speak anymore...
Buildings are like people, in fact.
Old and young, male and female,
ugly and beautiful, fat and skinny,
ambitious and lazy, rich and poor,
clinging to the past
or reaching out to the future.
Don't get me wrong: this is not a metaphor.
Buildings DO speak to us!
They have messages. Of course.
Some really WANT a constant dialogue with us.
Some rather listen carefully first.
And you have probably noticed:
Some of them like us a lot, some less
and some not at all.
Buildings, like people, are subject to time
and exist in a three-dimensional world.
That's why our film is in 3D.
It's an invitation to wander around,
to experience and to listen, for once.
The building you will encounter
is a particularly gentle and friendly one,
made for learning, reading and communicating.
Its hills and valleys (yes, they exist in there)
are eager to welcome you,
to help, to be of service,
and to be, in the best sense of the word,
a meeting place.

(by Wim Wenders, July 2010)