Architecture is not based on concrete and steel and the elements of the soil. It’s based on wonder.

Libeskind contrasts architecture’s physical substrate (concrete, steel, soil) with its animating principle: “wonder.” The point is not to deny material reality but to insist that architecture’s essence lies in the experience it creates—surprise, awe, reflection, and a sense of possibility. In this view, technical competence is necessary but insufficient; a building becomes architecture when it transforms mere shelter or structure into a meaningful encounter with space, light, history, or community. The quote also implies an ethical and artistic demand: architects should design for human imagination and emotional resonance, not just efficiency, cost, or formal novelty.