Zumthor's depth of understanding architecture and design exceeds that of most architects...or at least, he's better at verbalizing the moments in the design process that aren't often described successfully. Those difficult to describe moments are the greatest contributors to the "wholeness" of a project. A good floor plan can only go so far as to make a building feel complete. Rather, it is the intention of the design that allows a patron to fit into a pocket of time or space within a building. A space becomes real once it is pushed past its initial design, and once it has space to materialize as a standing building. A structure will endure the influence of its site, the people involved in its development, and the environment in which it lives before it is granted its reputation in the architecture world. Even then, the structure will still undergo changes according to its surroundings, its age, and the people that inhabit it.