Wim Crouwel
Proust Questionnaire
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Sitting quiet at my worktable.
What is your greatest fear?
Having nothing to do.
Which historical figure do you most identify with?
Josef Müller-Brockmann.
Which living person do you most admire?
Karl Gerstner.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Being a workaholic.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Intolerance.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Restoring and caring my classic car; an MG-TC.
What is your favorite journey?
The daily journey through my head.
What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Being penny-wise and pound-foolish.
On what occasion do you lie?
Whenever needed.
What do you dislike most about your appearance?
The disappearing hair at my crown.
Which living person do you most despise?
The worst of all living dictators; I wouldn't know who is the worst.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
All consequences lead to the devil. (Is this expression known in English?)
What is your greatest regret?
Selling once one of my greatest classic cars; an AC Aceca.
What or who is the greatest love of your life?
My partner!
Which talent would you most like to have?
Patience.
What is your current state of mind?
Moody, while answering this questionnaire.
If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?
That I could take the place of one of my sons.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
That my designs haven't passed unnoticed.
If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?
A 3-dimensional grid.
If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?
An architect.
What is your most treasured possession?
My library.
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Left alone without work.
Where would you like to live?
I feel good in Amsterdam.
What is your favorite occupation?
To design, as well as to work on my old car.
What is your most marked characteristic?
Trust in the future.
What is the quality you most like in a man?
Friendship.
What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Warmth.
What do you most value in your friends?
Loyalty.
Who are your favorite writers?
The authors of biographies.
Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Little Nemo.
Who are your heroes in real life?
Karl Gerstner and Norman Foster.
What are your favorite names?
The names of my children: Gili, Melchior and Remco.
What is it that you most dislike?
Laziness.
How would you like to die?
Sudden, at once!
What is your motto?
Design well and stay with your principles.