Full transcript
0:01The A to Z of Isms.
0:03Minimalism.
0:04For some people, minimalism just means not owning any stuff,
0:09it's a lifestyle choice.
0:10It means owning few possessions, living in largely empty space,
0:14and even eating minimalist food.
0:16No chips for the minimalists.
0:18They own shiny white tablets, shop at little grey stores,
0:21and don’t have enough black plastic chairs.
0:24For some, it's to do with architecture,
0:26and for others, it’s a musical movement.
0:28In fact, minimalism is a philosophy
0:31with roots and branches in many places.
0:34The word minimalism first turns up in 1965,
0:37in an article by British philosopher, Richard Wollheim,
0:40who wrote about artists with minimal art content.
0:45This negative description was turned into a positive
0:47by minimalist artists.
0:49They saw minimalism as a kind of pure art.
0:52To quote the minimalist painter Frank Stella,
0:57This isn't art that copies something real - a person's face, a nice horse,
1:00or tries to depict a feeling.
1:02A minimalist art object is itself, and nothing else.
1:06All minimalism is, in part, a reaction.
1:08In the case of minimalist architecture,
1:11it’s a reaction to decoration, to ornament, and to fuss.
1:14Minimalist buildings are simple,
1:16and minimalist architects like Ludwig Mies van der Rohe,
1:18and Maya Lin create structures full of light and space.
1:22Their work can be summed up in Van der Rohe's famous statement that,
1:25"Less is more."
1:27Minimalist gurus, like Marie Kondo, believe in decluttering, but say,
1:31"It's not about knowing what to throw out, it's knowing what to keep."
1:34A lot of minimalism can appear harsh and inhuman,
1:37the exception is minimalistic music.
1:40Pioneered by composers like Philip Glass,
1:43minimalist music features repetition, simple patterns, and phase shifting-
1:47the movement of a repeating item to create an arresting effect.
1:51Despite the often austere simplicity of the music, or because of it,
1:55many minimalistic pieces of music are profoundly moving
1:58and deeply emotional.
1:59Minimalism is, in part,
2:01a reaction to the increasingly busy and loud world around us.
2:05Artists and consumers alike
2:07have reacted against the clutter and chaos of life and art,
2:11and created many disparate forms of minimalism.
2:14Sometimes minimalism can seem confusing,
2:16as in Carl Andre's famous brick sculpture.
2:20Sometimes it can be stark, like a Mise van der Rohe office block.
2:24But sometimes, as in the field of minimalist music,
2:27minimalism can be beautiful.
2:30Thanks for watching! :)
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