From Louis Kahn's tranquil Salk Institute in California to Peter Zumthor's mystical Therme Vals in Switzerland, these minimalist structures are worth the trip to pay architectural homage
Minimalism, as a movement, originated in the art world. It began as a postwar art movement which heavily influenced many visual artists, musicians, architects, and designers throughout the 1960s and 1970s. The term was brought into common use in 1965 by the British philosopher Richard Wollheim who used it to critique a burgeoning group of artists whose work could be identified by its “minimal art content”.
As an art movement, it was a reaction against the highly rigid and academic art world and a protest of the extravagance of an increasingly consumerist and commoditised society. Visually, it was represented as the stripping down to the simplest elements such as shape or colour.
For architecture, the principles of minimalism remain the same: to do the most, using the least. Minimalist architecture is characterised by deliberate geometric shapes, structural repetition, neatness, symmetry, and plain materials, while minimalist interiors emphasise empty spaces using simple lighting, sparse furniture, and strong lines.
We've rounded up five iconic buildings that eloquently express the ideals of minimalist architecture.
Read more: 8 minimalist Malaysian homes that do more with less
Edith Farnsworth House, Plano, Illinois, USA
Designed by German American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe for Dr Edith Farnsworth, it's hard to imagine this platonic ideal of European modernism was created in 1951.
The rectangular, flat-roofed, and pavilion-like home features only one solid interior volume. Scrupulously free of adornment, the focus is on literally exposing the beauty of the H-beam steel, Roman travertine, and plate glass materials. In addition, the pavilion's massive windows provide unobstructed views of the tranquil surroundings.
In the hubris it took to create this, its design is unsuitable for its climate; bugs would swarm the porch during the hot summers and cold winters caused condensation to creep up its window walls. The house is situated along a flood plane and would be continually besieged by floods. Farnsworth hated the house so much that she sued the architect.
See also: Home Tour: A Minimalist Kampung Retreat in Janda Baik, Malaysia
