“Die unausweichliche Frage nach dem eigenen Stil beginnt mit der Überwinding der Mode.”
This quote, unattributed, comes from the homepage of Kniže & Co., a haberdashery in Vienna still operating in a building designed by Adolf Loos. Luckily for me, the Kniže website provides this English translation: “The unavoidable question of style begins with the overcoming of fashion.” As a teacher of architecture (on a good day), I can think of no more succinct statement of the current dilemma in design.