The Crux of Minimalist Architecture: A Local Strategy of Housing Design in Jakarta or a Break Free from Traditions?

Abstract

During the 1950s, the idea of Minimalism presents itself as one of the response of the search of universal language in art and architecture. This particular style, which was started as an art movement, has received many critics in the relation to the loss of art but nevertheless Minimalism has spread all over the world and influenced many disciplines, including architecture. In minimalist architecture, elements of design convey simplicity, basic geometrical forms, with no decoration, and the use of white color, modern materials and clean spaces. The “less is more” movement in architecture, which can be seen in the works of Mies van der Rohe and also in the International Style that celebrates materiality and rationality, is also understood as Minimalism. Moreover, an important historical connection to minimalist architecture is the relationship to popular representations of how the upscale modern family lived. Recently, the idea of minimalist architecture appears in Indonesia as a preferable housing style. Adapting minimalist architecture to be suitable for a tropical climate can be done partly by modifying the forms and the microclimate such as using passive system approach or additional equipment that creates comfort in the building. This paper investigates the idea of minimalist architecture in Jakarta, Indonesia, and how the idea is widely used for housing. Some questions related to this study are investigating whether minimalist architecture in Jakarta shares the same principles with minimalist architecture in its earlier time or it is only a trend in housing design. Not only this study analyzes the moment when the idea of Minimalism develops in the history of modern architecture but also some important characteristics of minimalist architecture in different era and space. In addition, this study also discusses how minimalist architecture that happens in Jakarta becomes a way of dealing with both modern and local conditions, including a break free from traditions.