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How a Great Architect Thinks, with Bjarke Ingels | Better in Person
Brief
Bjarke Ingels joined Stephen Dubner on Better in Person to lay out how he thinks about architecture, practice, and professional purpose. Ingels—who identifies as creative director of BIG rather than CEO—said the firm now has roughly 700 architects across seven offices (Copenhagen, New York, London, Barcelona, Los Angeles, Zurich, Shanghai). He traced BIG’s trajectory from Plot (2001) through projects such as VIA 57 in New York, The Spiral, the LEGO House, and an upcoming stadium for the Oakland A’s in Las Vegas. Ingels also described an R&D partnership with NASA and Icon to explore 3D-printed lunar construction and even brought synthetic moon dust to Dubner as an opening anecdote. The conversation ranged from design philosophy (his oxymoronic 'utopian pragmatism' and the graphic-novel manifesto Yes Is More) to concrete urban proposals — notably a community-backed alternative for the Brooklyn Heights BQE that would add roughly 10 hectares of parkland by putting a lid over a reconfigured roadway.
The pair dug into the organizational and economic realities of architecture. Dubner pushed on systemic puzzles — long education, relatively low salaries, and the lack of recurring royalties for architects — and Ingels agreed it ‘‘makes no sense,’’ floating a 1–2% estate royalty as one possible reform. Ingels described BIG’s studio culture: iterative work, shared credit to surface the best ideas, and treating firm IP as reusable (with clients sometimes seeking ownership). He recounted a 2020 ‘bucket list’ (opera, philharmonic, airport, stadium, national library) and said BIG committed to overinvesting up to 25% of earnings to win such commissions; within two years they won the Prague Philharmonic and the Zurich airport. The episode ends on longevity and ambition: Ingels (age ~50) framed architecture as a lifelong craft that often peaks later in life and said he wants to be remembered for projects he has yet to build, echoing examples like Wright and Gehry who achieved signature works well into later decades.
Why it matters
Bjarke Ingels (creative director of BIG) said the firm employs about 700 architects and operates in seven cities: Copenhagen, New York, London, Barcelona, Los Angeles, Zurich and Shanghai.
Key details
- Ingels described a 2020 'bucket list' (opera house, philharmonic, airport, stadium, national library) and said BIG agreed to overinvest up to 25% of earnings to pursue those commissions — within two years they won the Prague Philharmonic and the Zurich airport projects.
- Ingels and Stephen Dubner discussed BIG's concrete projects and initiatives: VIA 57 (noted as Bjarke's early New York work), The Spiral and the LEGO House, plus an upcoming stadium for the Oakland A's (moving to Las Vegas), and an R&D collaboration with NASA and Icon to 3D-print lunar construction using simulated moon dust (Bjarke brought synthetic moon dust as a gift).
- On profession and pay: Dubner challenged architecture's economics — long training, low average pay, and no royalties — and Ingels agreed it 'makes no sense,' suggesting industry changes like a 1–2% royalty to estates as one possible fix.
- Ingels described BIG's internal creative culture: he calls his role creative director, emphasizes shared credit (avoid hoarding ideas), creates an iterative 'primordial soup' to surface eureka moments, and treats firm IP as reusable while navigating client IP demands.
- Community/urban example: Ingels recounted proposing an alternative to the Brooklyn Heights BQE renovation — lowering the highway, adding a lid to create ~10 hectares of parkland while keeping six-lane capacity — presented at a community meeting that received applause and later drew city interest.