Less is more. Less is bore. I am a whore. What is what?

Abstract

The starting point of this work is primarily expressed in the quotes: "less is more", "less is a bore" and "I am a whore." These phrases are substantially disclosed, however, sometimes are used outside their context, becoming a subject of several interpretations. Nowadays, Mies van der Rohe is inseparable from his "less is more." It is intended, in the first part, to focus on the work of Mies van der Rohe, seeking to understand how the phrase "less is more" was disseminated and what are the various interpretations that can be done within the work of Mies. The second part, focuses on the study of Robert Venturi's "less is a bore", establishing a critical comparison between Mies van der Rohe and Venturi & Scott Brown, in order to demonstrate that there are commonalities much deeper and more complex than the label, Mies = "less is more" / Venturi & Scott Brown = "less is a bore." The third section is devoted to Philip Johnson, with his phrase "I am a whore." It seeks to discern the meaning of the phrase in the context it was used and aims to reflect on the pervert similarities between the work of Philip Johnson and Mies, in a stage, and between Philip Johnson and Venturi & Scott Brown, also exploring the biographical contact between the architects. With this theme and this work is intended to provide a reflection on the relativism that axiomatic statements can get in Architecture.