I am not a minimalist. Maybe in my architecture - and architectural tastes- I am in a way. But show me a home where there is not a shred of clutter or evidence that someone actually LIVES there, and I will show you what instantaneous hives look like on me. Throughout my life I have struggled with having just a little bit too much in the realm of "stuff". I like my stuff! And I like to see it in my surroundings. This does make for sometimes too much STUFF, and it's sometimes hard to clean around said stuff. But I'm getting better, and some recent movements in the design world have made me feel more at home with my personal style around the house. Finally people are realizing that real people (at least most of us) don't live in "Dwell"-like abodes with nary a pillow out of place (if pillows are even allowed, I'm not sure) and never a smile on the dwellers face. For example.
Right now Todd Selby's online photo project and book are illustrating this recent trend, and in the process they are helping me to make a connection. Most of Mr. Selby's subjects are creative types, and I've heard that he doesn't tell them when he's coming to shoot so that the homes and studios are not "cleaned up" for him. For me this illustrates that more than any other group, creative folk tend to live in a little more clutter than the rest of us. I'm not talking about people being hoarders, I'm just talking about having things around you that inspire. And his photos of these creative people in their slightly cluttered homes do inspire:
More here.
