Less is only more where more is no good.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s aphorism is a pointed rebuttal to the modernist slogan “less is more,” often associated with Mies van der Rohe. Wright suggests that reduction and restraint are not virtues in themselves; they are only valuable when additional elements would be pointless, harmful, or merely decorative. In other words, simplicity should be the outcome of fitness and integrity, not an aesthetic dogma. The line reflects Wright’s broader architectural philosophy: design should grow from purpose, structure, materials, and human use, and it may be spare or richly articulated depending on what the work genuinely requires.