Less or More - New Ideas on Architecture, Design, Art, Theory

"For us, a building continues to exist not as a dilemma of whether it is less or more, but in being designed and built by taking into account the features distilled from the ideas we have explained in this book. Therefore, the title of this book was chosen as LESS OR MORE to draw attention specifically to "meaning" and "resistance" beyond the dichotomy of whether architectural abstraction is less or more." Gökhan Avcıoğlu, 2023

The book LESS OR MORE has been published, featuring the personal memories, notes, questions, sketches, and designs of Gökhan Avcıoğlu and his GAD Foundation colleagues, explaining their efforts in architectural practice during a specific period. LESS OR MORE aims to inventory the works of Gökhan Avcıoğlu and the GAD Foundation in the fields of architecture, design, art, and theory, and to raise awareness about important issues concerning the architecture of our time. The book not only presents their works but also countless data, narratives, history, and turning points related to architectural design worldwide.

This book, which we can describe as a kind of "director's cut" featuring the personal memories, notes, questions, sketches, and designs of Gökhan Avcıoğlu and his colleagues, explaining their efforts in architectural practice during a specific period, aims both to inventory our works and to raise awareness about important issues concerning the architecture of our time.

In this context, the book presents not only our works but also countless data, narratives, history, and turning points related to architectural design worldwide. The introductory boxes in this book, which refer to the world beyond architecture, are designed to inform those interested in design practice about such topics as well.

This book is not merely an anthology of GAD's structures/works; the structures/works included in the book, whether experimental, under construction, or already built, have been selected as examples that readers can use to discuss their existing thoughts and perspectives.

Who is Gökhan Avcıoğlu?

Gökhan Avcıoğlu, founder and director of GAD Architecture and the GAD Foundation, has been creating dynamic, innovative concepts for projects ranging from small private homes to extensive urban planning around the world for over 25 years. Avcıoğlu was born in Ankara in 1960. In addition to his education in fields such as painting and sculpture and his activities in artistic areas, Avcıoğlu, who studied architecture at Konya Selçuk University in 1983, has won numerous awards for his work, including the 1997 Turkish Architects Award, Bronze Medal. In 1994, he founded the architectural firm Global Architectural Development (GAD). In 2014, he founded the GAD Foundation to conduct research and share knowledge on architecture and settlement culture. Office buildings, hotels, cultural centers, public, commercial areas, and numerous residences in Istanbul, Bodrum, New Jersey, New York, Washington D.C., Virginia, Connecticut, and Moscow are among his extensive and countless projects. While conducting architectural design studios at universities such as Ecole Speciale, UPenn Weitzman Architecture, Yıldız Technical University, and Istanbul Technical University, he has also made significant contributions to the field of architectural theory.