Minimalism is a term that ages back a lot longer than we think. and its meaning in our modern day and age has been interpreted completely differently from humans back then.
Let's take a look back and learn about the origin of the word, and what it meant when it was born in the 1800s.
Henry David Thoreau was an American transcendentalist in the 1800s. A transcendentalist is someone who believes that human knowledge stretches far beyond just scientific discoveries. That, more importantly, we should rely on impulse and the sensations that we feel to help guide our actions.
In Thoreau’s book titled ‘Walden’, he writes that awareness and wisdom can be derived from living a more simplistic lifestyle. This was the foundation of the concept of minimalism.
As time went on, the term ‘minimalism’ became more significant in specific categories. One of the more prominent ones, which became more famous during the Elevated Design Era from the 1920s to the 1930s, was product design. The Bauhaus School - a fine arts school located in Germany - had the ideology that more simplistic designs lead to a more simplistic lifestyle, hence achieving minimalism.
As we reach modern day, we have now entered a world in which minimalism is a much more colloquially used term, where it is used in many different industries and even during conversation. The term has branched off into several categories, including fashion, interior design, fine art, food, and one’s entire way of living.
In contrast, there is also another slightly less commonly known concept called maximalism. As stated before, minimalism, in the interior design and lifestyle sense, means that you get rid of excess elements in your house or life, and keep only what you need. However, being a maximalist means that you utilize all of the space you have available to create a much more fulfilled space.
Today, there are no rules classifying which one you choose to adopt in life. I personally know people who fall on complete opposite ends of the spectrum, and who all live their lives in very different ways. However, one thing that I have noticed in these different people is that by having the option to choose how you wish to run your life, you unlock the ability to feel the most happiness and security in it.
What is the point of all of this? Why is it important to know what minimalism means, and how your lifestyle may differ from others? I very strongly believe that no matter who you are, it is important to understand that these two categories do not translate to how organised or disorganised your life may be. Maximalist people deliberately choose to have a more ‘cluttered’ way of living, because that is simply how their brain works, what their preference is, and how they’ve been living their whole life. If a maximalist were to, for example, try and cut down things in their household, they may stress themselves out even more, and interrupt their daily routine due to the fact that they are having trouble finding things. On the other hand, if a minimalist person were to try and include more elements into their lives, for example by designing a more full workspace, this may translate to a complete mess in their minds, therefore being unable to focus fully.
I believe that no matter which category you fall into, it is important to embrace your style of living and who you are as a person, because your preferences guide how you express yourself, and which environment feels the most secure to you.
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