Publication Magazine Volume 2 Friendly House | Page 22

Structure
Concepts and design elements
The concept of minimalist architecture is to strip everything
down to its essential quality and achieve simplicity. The idea is
not completely without ornamentation, but that all parts, details,
and joinery are considered as reduced to a stage where no one
can remove anything further to improve the design.
The considerations for ‘essences’ are light, form, detail of
material, space, place, and human condition. Minimalist
architects not only consider the physical qualities of the building.
They consider the spiritual dimension and the invisible, by
listening to the figure and paying attention to details, people,
space, nature, and materials., believing this reveals the abstract
quality of something that is invisible and aids the search for
the essence of those invisible qualities—such as natural light,
sky, earth, and air. In addition, they “open a dialogue” with the
surrounding environment to decide the most essential materials
for the construction and create relationships between buildings
and sites.
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In minimalist architecture, design elements strive to convey the
message of simplicity. The basic geometric forms, elements
without decoration, simple materials and the repetitions of
structures represent a sense of order and essential quality. The
movement of natural light in buildings reveals simple and clean
spaces. In the late 19th century as the arts and crafts movement
became popular in Britain, people valued the attitude of ‘truth to
materials’ with respect to the profound and innate characteristics
of materials. Minimalist architects humbly ‘listen to figure,’
seeking essence and simplicity by rediscovering the valuable
qualities in simple and common materials.
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