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Aug 26, 2023

A century of evolution of the minimalist home: 9 signature examples

The minimalist home has not always been an architectural theme. In the Western world, design culture has associated a certain size – minimal – with a certain function – housing – only in the last

The minimalist home has not always been an architectural theme. In the Western world, design culture has associated a certain size – minimal – with a certain function – housing – only in the last century. Primarily, the minimalist home has been intended as the initial house for everyone. Beginning from the late 1910s, architects belonging to the Modern Movement, who held socialist and progressive ideals, created two distinct types of designs: extravagant mansions as manifestos for wealthy and educated clients, and small but “dignified” dwellings to be mass-produced in large quantities. The modernist existenzminimum, available in various forms, embodies simplicity and lacks ornamentation, as these features are essential for enabling industrialization and the construction of vast quantities in a truly democratic manner.

A few decades later, in the 1950s and 1960s, a period often characterized as carefree, marked by newfound prosperity and changing social norms, the minimalist home took on a new role as a vacation home. With the rise of mass tourism, the aspiration of owning a second home for vacations became attainable for many. Initially, this trend involved simplifying and minimizing the domestic space to cater specifically to temporary occupation, usually for a few months each year. Later, the advent of experimentation with plastics led to a significant transformation in vacation homes. The minimalist home evolved into a modular shell, characterized by its lightweight and foundation-less structure, making it easily disassembled and portable. This modular nature allowed the minimalist home to travel with its occupants when needed.