Minimalism: design and sustainability to lifestyle

The phrase “less is more” was first introduced by Robert Browning in 1855 in a poem called “Andrea del Sarto” and was made famous by designer and architect, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

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Interestingly enough, Ludwig Mies’ minimalist and modern aesthetic even reached our cultural hub of Montreal when he designed Westmount Square in 1964. Since the 1960s, this dictum has gradually gained momentum in all creative fields. He was a true modernist pioneer and an iconic figure of 20th-century architecture and design. Sustained by his famous trenchant statements like ‘less is more’ and ‘God is in the details’, the textures of his Barcelona Pavilion (1929/1986), the steel-and-glass aesthetic of the Seagram Building (1956-1958) and his paradigmatic examples of domestic architecture like the Farnsworth House in Plano, Illinois (1945-1951), have become some of the world’s most emblematic and widely-recognized architectural elements and structures built in the last century.

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Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Farnsworth House near Plano, Illinois, 1951.

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The pandemic response: DIY

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With people being stuck at home during lockdown, investing in short-term and trendy pieces for work events and social gatherings became less of a priority, and as a result, the pandemic changed the way products were being viewed and consumed.

Over the last two years, we found new and creative ways of distracting ourselves such as making our own bread, upcycling our clothes and DIY-ing pieces of furniture or painting. During this process, we’ve also decluttered our homes to make space for important and useful things.  

People became more socially and environmentally responsible since they were more concerned with purchasing items that were practical and would bring them comfort and joy instead of buying single-use and low-cost products.

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Our take on Minimalism and Sustainability

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Minimalist designs can address the lack of sustainability in many different industries, notably in the fashion industry. Since fast-fashion clothing items are designed to last a mere one to two years, then end up in landfills, sustainable and minimalist designers give people the opportunity to invest in pieces that are durable and timeless. The benefits are obvious: reduced carbon footprint and less waste.

BEDI was founded on the goal of balancing sustainability and design. As minimalists our aim is to encourage people to buy less, use items longer and make sure that these items have a second life so they never end up in a landfill.  Every season we strive to provide a capsule collection of elevated essentials that are durable and timeless, made predominantly from upcycled materials.

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Insights into a Minimalist lifestyle

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In recent years, the minimalist lifestyle became so popular that some have decided to truly commit to it and to implement minimalism in different aspects of their lives. From diet, to mindset and home design. Christopher Robertson, an American architect, influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright (Wright Backpack) and Tadao Ando (Ando Satchel) - whom we've named two of our bags after - designed a sustainable house through minimalist concept, natural light and ventilation strategy, local material sourcing as well as nature integration.

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“In Japan, we saw projects by architect Tadao Ando and we made the decision to do a concrete house, costs aside,” says architect Robertson, who runs the firm Robertson Design with his wife, Vivi Nguyen. “We love the slightly Brutalist minimalist approach Ando takes and wanted to re-create some of the magic in his projects into ours.”

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The home, where they live with their young family, is essentially made up of two stacked volumes, one in wood and one in concrete, accessed via a sequenced entry that sends visitors through a rock-garden-style courtyard into a small entry, and then opened to a much larger open-plan kitchen/living room/dining room.

“You don't just walk into an Ando building; there's a procession,” says Robertson. The sequence is very common in Japanese residential architecture and was emulated by Frank Lloyd Wright in his American home designs.

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Christopher Robertson, A Japanese-Inspired Home in Houston, Texas, 2020.