Peter Cook describes a photograph of Gunnar Asplund's Paradise Cafe as the origin of his ambition to become a modern architect, and also the origin of his interest in architecture that combines hard (glass, steel) and soft (fabric, flora). He discusses projects from Plug-In City (1964) through the Kunsthaus, Graz (2003), and the buildings for the Vienna University of Economics and Business (2014) in terms of the contrast between hard and soft. Cook describes several recent large scale urban projects, and responds to audience comments about drawing. He admits that architecture might not really be the best venue for his explorations, but intends to continue using humor to keep architecture from being "hijacked by tedious people."