Minimalist aesthetic

For my upcycle project, I chose to create a patchwork denim bear. The type of aesthetic that falls into is the patchwork aesthetic, but combined with the fabric I chose, it developed a bit of a maximalist vibe. Due to that, the opposite aesthetic to that would be minimalism and maybe even industrial. Industrial would work as well because it goes hand in hand with minimalism and gives that clean, neat, simple effect that minimalism has. According to the Britannica article on minimalism, the movement began in the late 50s, coming from the initial AvantGarde notion that art was taking earlier in the decade. It also took inspiration from modernist art, like the painting by Piet Mondrian named Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow, which has simple geometric shapes with primary colors. The movement is characterized by the idea that less is more, and in fashion, it focuses more on simple and neat silhouettes with neutral, plain colors. In minimalism, you often see the sleek look in both the color and the structure of the clothing pieces, especially the seems and shape. In terms of color for fashion, many of the Vogue articles on fashion emphasize neutral colors and achromatic tones

Overall, minimalism is very similar to other aesthetics and has begun to rise over the years, especially in the fashion scene, with many people following the aesthetic as a lifestyle. As I hinted before, Vouge has a whole page dedicated to articles on minimalist fashion, whether it is a guide to what you should wear in the summer or a new collection being dropped by a designer; its popularity is almost overwhelming, as the BBC article linked below talks about its rising popularity Minimalism is embraced everywhere and even toys have been affected.  If I had used this aesthetic instead of the folk art maximalist style for this project, I would probably choose simple tones, maybe brown, beige, white, or black. Instead of making the seams of the patch visible on the bear, it would have a hidden seem where you would still see the patch, but instead of looking like it was mended, it would look intentional. Although the Sashiko mending style can fit the minimalist aesthetic, as many Japanese fashion is minimal, it would still look too much. I decided to use that style for a minimalist bear instead; it would have to be very clean, with few designs, and have a straight and geometrical pattern. Due to the nature of minimalism, I think if I had made two or three regular bare bears out of scrap fabric, it would also fit into the minimalist aesthetic because it would invoke the notion that less is more due to the nature of using less fabric and designs to make a complete bear. The bear would look more minimalist if I had changed the material to more sleek fabrics like cotton or fleece. It would also work if I had just made a teddy bear with regular eyes, a snout, and no outstanding color or texture.

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20230331-the-rise-of-the-minimalist-wardrobe

https://www.vogue.com/tag/misc/minimalism

https://www.silkandsonder.com/blogs/news/what-does-it-mean-to-have-a-minimalist-aesthetic?srsltid=AfmBOoqELtQR1yENihCyxXj7fEt1L80pfctNgJwge60E9GDpUOypFivL

https://www.britannica.com/art/Minimalism

The Meaning Of Minimalist Aesthetics: Why Less Is More