Each chapter in the book presents the history of one BIG project, from the moment of its inception all the way through its opening. The cartoon cells recount many of the small, behind-the-scenes, logistical decisions that shape a building’s overall design and move a project forward. In this way the book presents a more realistic picture of how architecture is produced, showing the teams of people and years of planning that are necessary to complete a large-scale construction project. The book puts to rest the myth that a building is one architect’s unadulterated artistic vision.
“Yes is More” owes a great deal to “Delirious New York,” architect Rem Koolhaus’ now-classic tribute to the glamorous chaos of Manhattan, which is illustrated with wry watercolor cartoons. But unlike “Delirious New York,” which depicts monuments like the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building as characters inhabiting the city, “Yes is More” taps the architect as its hero. Dressed in graphic T’s, running shoes, and a baggy black blazer, Ingels is an appealing figure. With the book’s honest, open presentation, he demystifies much of what makes contemporary architectural culture so sterile and remote. As he and his office operate, architecture is a joyful, transparent, productive, public act. Ingels is often pictured within the pages of the book alert and on his feet, ready to spring into action. If this is the new image of the architect, as an energetic global showman, then it’s a welcome one.