Althouse: Why are there so many videos about minimalism?

April 4, 2019

Why are there so many videos about minimalism?

And why are they so long and complicated?

I'm talking about unwatchable bilge like this and this.

64 comments:

rehajm said...: That's not the best Steven Wright joke but any Steven Wright joke is good. Still, nothing.

Tedx Edinburgh is a tough crowd. Or maybe they couldn't understand her thick accent?; 4/4/19, 2:04 PM
rehajm said...: All these minimalists should get rid of their computers.; 4/4/19, 2:07 PM
Michael K said...: I thought you were going to write about the Tiny house thing.

My daughter has 5 acres in northern Idaho and her friends next door are building their own cabin. Not exactly tiny houses but pretty basic living.; 4/4/19, 2:10 PM
Lyle Sanford, RMT said...: I clicked, wondering when you got interested in Glass and Reich :-(; 4/4/19, 2:18 PM
Quaestor said...: One of Life's Little Lessons No. 24C: If it's a TED Talk, it's unwatchable bilge.; 4/4/19, 2:22 PM
Quaestor said...: One of Life's Little Lessons No. 24D: Most people who use words ending in ism or ist don't know shit from shine-ola.; 4/4/19, 2:28 PM
Rob said...: Ann, don't watch anything that doesn't bring you joy.; 4/4/19, 2:29 PM
Henry said...: I thought of something like this.

Hypnotic and not so long.; 4/4/19, 2:29 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: I like Glass and Reich. "Six Marimbas"-- great piece. (I like marimbas so no big surprise there.) Terry Riley, not so much.

Regarding your original question, I can think of several reasons:

- It's hip and trendy.

- So many people grew up in kitschy, cluttered homes filled with junky stuff by their regrettably clueless parents, and it's a reaction to that.

- Lots of Millenials can't afford to buy houses, decent cars, campers, or boats, much less good furniture and fine art, so they're making a virtue out of a necessity.

- But mostly because it's hip and trendy, and it's a low-cost way to signal your status as a sophisticated thought leader flying far above the consumption-obsessed lumpenproletariat.; 4/4/19, 2:30 PM
Henry said...: @Phidippus -- You will like the soundtrack to the video I posted.; 4/4/19, 2:36 PM
Quaestor said...: One of Life's Little Lessons No. 72: Looney Tunes animated shorts directed by Chuck Jones are outstanding examples of minimalist art. People who throw away stuff and then get rhapsodic about how "minimalism" changed their lives are mostly hapless morons who have tried dozens of isms in the past in a vain quest for happiness. After they re-acquire stuff they later regret junking, they will move on to another ism.; 4/4/19, 2:37 PM
Quaestor said...: A documentary about actual minimalism: Every Frame a Painting; 4/4/19, 2:44 PM
Quaestor said...: The problem with pseudo-minimalists who de-clutter their homes is that they always fail to de-clutter their minds first.; 4/4/19, 2:47 PM
Laslo Spatula said...: Because.

I am Laslo.; 4/4/19, 2:49 PM
Andrew said...: Good to see that I was beaten to the punch. This is a cultured crowd.

Other than the movie soundtracks (in part because of the visuals), Philip Glass never really worked for me. He just gets too boring and predictable. An exception for some reason is his Violin Concerto, which is surprisingly moving. I can't imagine being a musician and actually playing a Glass piece for three hours. What if you lose track of what measure you're on?

But Steve Reich blew me away the moment I first heard him. I listened to Desert Music repeatedly as a teenager. My step-mother once insisted I use headphones because it was driving her insane.

It's interesting that some people consider Sibelius to be an early minimalist, especially his final works like the 7th Symphony and Tapiola. Same with Carl Nielsen, such as the opening of his 5th Symphony.; 4/4/19, 2:57 PM
Lucid-Ideas said...: Minimalism is a new religion like veganism is. This means that it is secret 'maximalism', and it will be written about maximally, and talked about continuously, mostly at you, for a very very long time...; 4/4/19, 2:57 PM
JMW Turner said...: Well, here I am, nearly 69,and a completely different place in my life, having shed a long term marriage, my career, and a large house. The process of decluttering this past phase of my life of traditional furniture more suited to a large space has led me to acquire a modern distressed, industrial style of furniture that fits the scale of an apartment sized condo feasible for a man. I collect books, classic movies in DVD,as well as music that covers classic 60s,70s rock, jazz, vocalists such as Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Babs Streisand, Nick Drake, and so on. The point is, I still have things, just what I can use and enjoy, not, as my ex wife characterized, dust collectors.; 4/4/19, 3:06 PM
Rusty said...: Because minimalism is HUGE!; 4/4/19, 3:14 PM
D 2 said...: Didn't someone on the blog sometime in the last decade or so suggest life is about energy, not money. If they didn't, they should have.

People who want to minimize a lifestyle of material possession simply have a different plan to how they want to convert their own energy into enjoyment. Nothing wrong with that in theory. Some people want to go camping, some people go to the beach, some like a book on a park bench, some drink wine, some eat avocados, some like Anne Hathaway movies, some want a new pair of shoes. Live and let live.

It's when someone wants to dictate to you, and how you should not have so much energy, or you don't DESERVE it, or you should only spend your energy account this way, that's when you nod politely and ensure that they arent voted in to occupy a seat of city council.(or worse.)

It's a simple life really. If only.; 4/4/19, 3:16 PM
Anthony said...: Quaestor said...
One of Life's Little Lessons No. 24C: If it's a TED Talk, it's unwatchable bilge.

I concur. I think when they started they had some good talks by interesting people, but it's turned into a blah-blah-listen-to-my-goofy-ideas-blah-blah fest.

Nonetheless, I rather like the concept of minimalism. Or at least, taking note of all the junk one has and getting rid of the useless stuff. I've conducted a few Great Purges over the last few years, culminating in a state-to-state move in which a lot of stuff went to the trash or Goodwill. I love not having so much stuff.

That and cleaning out my parents' old house when Mom died -- not quite a hoarder, but a never-throw-anything-away Depression kid -- has given me even more incentive not to accumulate stuff.; 4/4/19, 3:19 PM
SDaly said...: You only needed one example.; 4/4/19, 3:25 PM
rehajm said...: Because

‘cause; 4/4/19, 3:34 PM
tcrosse said...: Because

‘cause

cuz; 4/4/19, 3:35 PM
Dave in Tucson said...: I watched both videos you linked to pretty much all the way through (I skipped over the "please donate to my Patreon" bit of the last one), they didn't seem like unwatchable bilge to me.

Although TED and TEDx talks often seem to be pretty thin soup, and the one you linked was no exception, with deep insights like "moving sucks" and "seize the day".

The second one had a very nice insight where they said "if you don't make your own definition of success, somebody else will do it for you". I also feel like minimalism is the wrong word for what they're talking about (or at least what I found valuable about it). It's more figuring out what you value, and getting rid of the stuff you don't.; 4/4/19, 3:36 PM
BUMBLE BEE said...: Because they gotta sell floor mats????; 4/4/19, 3:50 PM
stevew said...: The only minimalists I pay attention to are Strunk & White in The Elements of Style.; 4/4/19, 3:53 PM
Art in LA said...: Somewhere between minimalism and maximalism is where everyone should be, the Optimum Spot. Amirite? Optimalists unite!; 4/4/19, 4:01 PM
jaydub said...: Minimalist posturing is mostly based in socialist tropes, as in personal property selfish, marketing devious, collective experience good. Capitalism, being underpinned by personal freedom and property rights, is evil because it fosters consumerism and wage slavery and wastes too many of Gaia's resources on unnecessary stuff - witness Bernie asking during the '16 campaign why we need 17 deodorants. Minimalists would be happy if we all drove East German Trabants and had to wait 10 years for the opportunity, just as my former GDR cousins did in their particular minimalist paradise. In the main, minimalism seems to be socialism masquerading as freedom from choice, because in the absence of markets there is no reason to offer choices.; 4/4/19, 4:19 PM
Mr Wibble said...: It's pornography for upper middle class white women.; 4/4/19, 4:19 PM
Mr Wibble said...: OMG, the first video she lists out theoretical goals someone might have. The goals?

Master of Fine Arts
Teacher
Published
Volunteer
Live Overseas
Bilingual

So, basically she wants to spend a year in Barcelona, banging her Catalan art teacher before coming home writing a book about it, and teaching kindergartners to finger-paint.

Pure upper-middle-class basic white girl fantasy.; 4/4/19, 4:24 PM
RLB_IV said...: This made me laugh. Minimalism is not new it’s been with us since the dawn of man but it was referred to as being poor.; 4/4/19, 4:32 PM
eddie willers said...: My favorite minimalist exchange:

?

!; 4/4/19, 4:35 PM
Churchy LaFemme: said...: A more important question.

(Come on, you know you were thinking it!); 4/4/19, 4:37 PM
Nichevo said...: Because

‘cause

cuz

b/c; 4/4/19, 4:50 PM
Henry said...: Why are there so many songs about rainbows?; 4/4/19, 4:58 PM
rehajm said...: Because

‘cause

cuz

b/c

BC; 4/4/19, 5:01 PM
Yancey Ward said...: Well, when you are virtue signalling, it takes lots and lots of bragging to make your point.; 4/4/19, 5:11 PM
Yancey Ward said...: And, in the case of minimalism, you have to make it look like it took lots and lots of effort. And, of course, they somehow never get rid of the computer.; 4/4/19, 5:12 PM
traditionalguy said...: Maybe it's because of the Tiny House fetish. Move into one of those and become an overnight minimalist.; 4/4/19, 5:16 PM
stlcdr said...: I, too, thought of tiny houses. But TED talks tend to be drivel when you get down to it. Except that on guy who starts a conversation going with a scammer/spammer...that was quite funny.; 4/4/19, 5:27 PM
Henry said...: A legit answer would be this:

1) People actually desire it (to a point)
2) It takes energy to do it
2) It's easier to do if coached

There are a host of things that people actually desire (to a point), that are easier to do when you have a coach. Working out is another one.; 4/4/19, 5:34 PM
Henry said...: TED has oversold the brand.; 4/4/19, 5:34 PM
tcrosse said...: Be minimalist. It's the least you can do.; 4/4/19, 5:35 PM
Bob Boyd said...: Minimalism is the least of my worries.; 4/4/19, 5:39 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: Thanks, Henry! It's great. Nice blend of various instruments.

It seems to me that this style of music, is "doing things" music. The people in the film doing the art things almost seemed like they were listening to it with me. I could listen to this while driving, working in my garden, even in the darkroom (where I have to count, sometimes).

With Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, all the rest, even Japanese shakuhachi (vertical flute) music, you surrender yourself to their sound world and let them take you on a little trip around the edges of human consciousness, time, and emotion. I personally can't do anything but listen to the music. Reich's style leaves a little more space for what you're doing, if you like. But it's on a little journey of its own, just the same, if you pay more attention.

It's nice that we have such choices of music in our civilization.

I'm going to be getting this record.; 4/4/19, 5:46 PM
bagoh20 said...: I'm currently going through a phase where I watch lots of self-defense and gun videos. My ol'lady calls them "bang bang videos".

Example channels on Youtube: "Active Self Protection", "Warrior Poet Society"; 4/4/19, 5:49 PM
bagoh20 said...: I think a frog with felt skin is a mutation that will not do well on the evolutionary battle field, although musical ability may lead to superior mating opportunities.; 4/4/19, 5:54 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: Also to Andrew: I agree with you about the mysterious brilliance of the Sibelius 7th.

When I was a youngster, my usually tolerant mother begged me to let up for a minute on listening to Mozart's Symphony #41 in C over and over again.

Even today, the last movement causes me to stop in my tracks and listen, no matter where I am at the time.

It's just about the opposite of minimal, but there's something compelling, simultaneously sad and joyful, about the music of a genius at the top of his powers, saying goodbye.; 4/4/19, 5:57 PM
Rosalyn C. said...: I only got through three minutes of the first video. How can you claim to want to simplify your life in one breath and then in the next breath talk about how you are not satisfied living in the same continent? More, more, more.; 4/4/19, 6:01 PM
Bob Boyd said...: I think a frog with felt skin is a frog that has met Joe Biden.; 4/4/19, 6:07 PM
Jay Vogt said...: From the great Larry Gelbart, writer of the TV show M*A*S*H.

He had the almost as great Larry Linville as Major Burns whimsically observe once, "If less is more, just think how much more, more is".

Brilliant! Quote it all the time around here.; 4/4/19, 6:11 PM
dustbunny said...: It’s something to talk and talk about, doing nothing but showing how to empty out while filling blogs and cluttered minds with crap.; 4/4/19, 6:20 PM
iowan2 said...: I have the visceral response to minimalism as I do about cross fit, or veganism.
Do what you please...Shutup about it and leave me alone.; 4/4/19, 6:45 PM
Andrew said...: @Phidippus,
Couldn't agree more about the Mozart #41.; 4/4/19, 7:31 PM
Rusty said...: Dwarf shortage.; 4/4/19, 9:03 PM
Temujin said...: Please. Make it stop.

Especially the Ted talks with live NPR junkies in the audience, nodding approvingly at the latest bit of enlightened rice cake.; 4/4/19, 9:12 PM
Aught Severn said...: @Phidippus

First movement of #40 for me, badda-bum badda-bum badda-bum beh. Very haunting and extremely addictive. Same with the first movement of Beethoven's 7th. Dvorak, Brahms, Mendelssohn are my bread and butter choices, though.

As for minimalist-ish, I would vote for Barber's Adagio for Strings.; 4/5/19, 12:42 AM
BudBrown said...: Inagada hon; 4/5/19, 2:22 AM
Stephen St. Onge said...: Tom Wolfe laid it out in The Painted Word. The alleged art is not the real art. The real art is the theory behind the artwork. The alleged art is merely illustrations for the real art.

So the documentaries about minimalism are what minimalism is really about.; 4/5/19, 5:23 AM
Bob Boyd said...: A little bit of minimalism goes a long way.; 4/5/19, 6:21 AM
Nichevo said...: bagoh20 said...
I'm currently going through a phase where I watch lots of self-defense and gun videos. My ol'lady calls them "bang bang videos".

Forgotten Weapons
Hickock45
Steve1989mreinfo; 4/5/19, 6:42 AM
Rusty said...: Liberal intelligencia; 4/5/19, 7:00 AM
Larry J said...: Why are videos on minimalism so long? Why is abbreviation such a long word?; 4/5/19, 7:08 AM
Anonymous said...: A lot of the "minimalism" genre appears to me to be coded talk by women who want to talk about the pleasures and rewards of good housekeeping without admitting to themselves that they're talking about housekeeping. Thus all the attendant stupid vocabulary of "editing" and "curating", and the spirituality ooga-booga attached to the old housewifely virtues of thrift and saving.

I prefer the practical ladyblogs where the participants are upfront about their desire to achieve and maintain efficiently-run, financially secure, serene, clean, and tidy households.; 4/5/19, 7:46 AM