Death to Detail: Design’s Move Towards Minimalism

During the summer of 2023, I was able to spend five days in Rome, Italy. Upon my arrival, I initially perceived the old, asymmetrical buildings and uneven cobblestone streets as something that needed to be fixed as the Uber driver drove us into the heart of

Rome. The sun scorched the earth and my skin, never being used to such intense, up close heat. The brown, stone buildings cascaded over people walking through the busy streets as market owners enticed customers by showing their homegrown vegetables and homemade pastas. As the days passed by, I saw Italy in a different light; I began to see the beauty in the chaos of the designs and colors. I saw the stories of love, family, and the heart of culture.

Coming from America, we have the idea that everything must be new- our clothes, technology, and design. Minimalist design is the new “it” when it comes to designing a house or any type of interior expression. There are some pros to minimalism. Minimalism allows the least amount of decoration with limited design, so if you’re a clean freak, you can make your house look clean with ease since there aren’t a multitude of things and colors in your home. If you’re budgeting, minimalist pieces tend to be a bit cheaper due to their lack of design; the less effort put into something, the cheaper it tends to be. Or, if you’re temporarily in a living situation and don’t want to go all out, minimalist design may suit your lifestyle at that time.

However, mainstreaming minimalist design has unfortunately created some issues when it comes to housing and design preferences. In Italy, many of the apartments had been kept because they had already been around for hundreds of years. There is a certain comfortability and “homey” feel with these apartments because you can feel the life seeping from it- the life of others that had the chance to make that place a loving, caring environment.

Implementing new and fresh minimalist houses means that older homes have to be stripped down completely or destroyed altogether. We have destroyed kitchens with the rich, chocolate cabinets that smell like cinnamon and spices; we have destroyed the multicolor floral wallpaper that has hung generations of family pictures; and we have destroyed granite tops filled with intricate, one of a kind details for a slab of beige granite, all in the name of minimalism. We think we have to start new and plain to make something our own, but all of these “outdated” details and design preferences already spill years of warmth into your home. The intimate environment we wish to create is already established, and we choose to put cream paint over it.

If minimalist design is your forte, that’s completely fine. Some prefer to have a more uniform looking home. However, if you feel like you have to strip away the floral wallpaper or colored granite tops for the sake of keeping your space “mainstream” you don’t have to. You can keep the desk your grandfather made from the tree in the backyard- his labor of love. You can save those persian rugs that ooze rich reds and decadent clues in your living room. Make the space partial to you, not minimalism or trends. Keep the family couch; your loved ones have joined together during holidays and special events on that “old” piece of furniture. And for the love of everything, you don’t need to paint everything eggshell white.

Strike Out,

Katherine Stegall-Williams

Katherine Stegall-Williams is a Writer for Strike Magazine Chattanooga. You can find her on Instagram at @katherine.mae.williams