Minimalist Approach for Future Regeneration

Abstract

Lifestyles, consumption habits, ideologies and politics of communities are some of the major factors that orient the urban forms. Chaotic cities, mass consumption, postmodern discourses, impulse buying-being in debt and overconsumption of resources have created a rising lifestyle trend mostly in developed countries during the last decades. Minimalism as a lifestyle or philosophy has many potentials in the context of urban form too. As in the arts in 1900’s started with K. Malevich and as in the architecture in 1940’s started with L.van der Rohe, minimalism has made a great impact on both urban form and lifestyle in many cities. Reducing to the basic form which is the main assumption of minimalist approach dates back to ancient ages. The minimalist approach in history was seen in painting, sculpture, fashion, architecture, music, cinema, literature and philosophy. As a paradigm shift, the aim of this paper is that minimalist approach in urbanism regarding its relation with philosophy and typology would create sustainable and energy efficient new typologies for future de-cluttered cities. For the future regeneration processes, minimalist approach might be seen as an anti-neoliberal tool in the context of new urban forms instead of individual changes.