{"id":44479,"date":"2016-03-23T07:00:51","date_gmt":"2016-03-23T11:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uncommongoods.com\/?p=44479"},"modified":"2018-01-03T10:58:15","modified_gmt":"2018-01-03T15:58:15","slug":"uncommon-design-school-spring-cleaning-inspiration-marie-kondo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.com\/blog\/2016\/uncommon-design-school-spring-cleaning-inspiration-marie-kondo\/","title":{"rendered":"Uncommon Design School: <\/br>Spring Cleaning Inspiration <\/br>from Marie Kondo and William Morris"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring is a time when many people\u2019s thoughts turn to spring cleaning, the traditional tidying and ritual ridding of the clutter of winter. Accordingly, this uncommon design school session considers two views on weeding out\u2014philosophies to guide the often difficult decision of what to discard and what to keep in your home.<\/p>\n

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On the Other Hand Clock<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

One of the first modern movements that reexamined the design of everyday objects was the British Arts & Crafts movement, the first wave of an international, aesthetically focused campaign that sought to infuse the industrialized world with blatant beauty. The movement\u2019s main leader, William Morris, was as much philosopher as he was craftsman, and in 1880 he summarized his prescription for the ideal domestic collection:<\/p>\n

If you want a golden\u00a0rule\u00a0that will fit everybody, this is it: Have\u00a0nothing\u00a0in your houses that you do not\u00a0know\u00a0to be useful, or\u00a0believe\u00a0to be\u00a0beautiful.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~ “The Beauty of Life,” lecture at the Birmingham Society of Arts &\u00a0School of Design, 1880<\/span><\/p>\n

\"L:<\/a>

L: William Morris;<\/a> R: Morris’ Peacock and Dragon textile design, 1878<\/a> [both Wikimedia]<\/p><\/div>\n

In this quotable prescription for the ideal interior, Morris reveals the duality of the Arts & Crafts approach: it encourages beauty for its own sake, but also the virtues of simplicity and utility in design. The most iconic Arts & Crafts objects\u2014especially in the American wave of the movement<\/a>\u2014excelled in both. There, furniture makers reduced \u201cdecoration\u201d to handcrafted hardware and joinery; designers allowed materials to express their aesthetic or structural virtues rather than forcing them into artificial filigree; practitioners championed the full fusion of beauty and utility, form and function.<\/p>\n

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Wooden Wrap Lamp<\/a> (L)<\/p><\/div>\n

But in the products of Morris\u2019 own decorative arts firm, Morris & Co., the virtues of usefulness can be hard to spot under layers of refined neo-gothic revival. The firm’s insistence on the finest materials and painstaking hand craftsmanship in all things meant that their furniture, textiles, and wallpaper were affordable only to the economically elite, a reality at odds with Morris\u2019 avowed socialism. In Morris\u2019 statement, the preservation of what you \u201cknow to be useful\u201d is more of a cultural call to action\u2014the invocation of a romanticized ideal of medieval simplicity.<\/p>\n

\"Sportsfile_(Web_Summit)_(22790692681)\"<\/a>

Marie Kondo [Photo via Web Summit on Flickr]<\/p><\/div>\n

135 years later, echoes of Morris\u2019 statement run through the Zen-inspired, home organization sensation that is Marie Kondo.<\/a> This proponent of purging our lives of superfluous stuff sounds more than a little like Morris when she summarizes her approach to cleaning up your act:<\/p>\n

Keep only those things that speak to your heart. Then take the plunge and discard all the rest. By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Handmade Nesting Baskets – Set of 3<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Both Morris and Kondo encourage a close look at the clutter that accumulates all too easily\u00a0until it can feel like it owns us instead of vice versa. But Kondo\u2019s approach is part of a wider call to \u201cmindfulness\u201d and a more minimal, curated lifestyle that begins with the stuff around us. Kondo\u2019s approach is not so much about seeking beauty within objects, but about the \u201cspark\u201d of clarity that can come from letting go of things.<\/p>\n

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Minimalist Teak Wall Shelf<\/a> (L)<\/p><\/div>\n

Fortunately, UncommonGoods has a wide variety of designs that come from that sweet spot where useful and beautiful intersect. So as you tackle your spring cleaning, consider replacing some of the items in your home that can claim neither usefulness nor beauty with designs that offer the benefits of the handmade, helpful, or harmonious.<\/p>\n

\"blogcta-aesthetichome\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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