I like quality. I like elegance even more than quality.
I like solution based on sound theoretical background, because they are better in quality and elegance.
I prefer to be around engineers who share this view of values.
However, I know that software engineering needs to be pragmatic. And you cannot always follow your beautiful theory. And when I have good reasons, I can be pragmatic and compromise. In a way, balancing theory and practice is another kind of elegance. The next leve of elegance.