Less is more: The art of reductionism

Weil am Rhein, Germany – A new exhibition looks at everyday objects reduced to their purest forms.

The Essence of Things: Design and the Art of Reduction at the Vitra Design Museum highlights reductionism in items that range from a prehistoric hand axe to multipack rings for beverage cans to a cut diamond and a smartphone.

The exhibition is divided into four sections: manufacture, function, aesthetics and ethics. A film shows the effort and skill needed to arrive at ‘simple’ solutions, by highlighting the process of making a fibreglass chair designed by Charles and Ray Eames. There is also a presentation on the manufacturing of the cheapest car in history, the ultra-compact Nano, produced in India.

The exhibition investigates concepts such as unity, lightness, geometry and compaction, which are themes LS:N Global will explore further in our forthcoming Leanomics trend.