Can minimalism survive when tech wants to beam light directly into your eyes?

The era of spatial computing is here - but I don’t want it in my eyes. Or in my home. But maybe more so my eyes?

Jun 21, 2023

Earlier this month, Apple unveiled their Vision Pro mixed reality headset to the world. Tech bros fell in love with it, futurists began planning Minority Report-esc ways to incorporate into their workflow, and the majority of the internet just made memes about it. But apart from looking like the premise of a Black Mirror episode, and raising serious concerns about the increasing disconnectedness of the western world, it also signals a larger step towards the death of minimalism on both an aesthetic and cultural level. While maximalists and Silicon Valley start-ups are celebrating a near-future where you blink and the chip in your skull beams notifications directly onto your living room wall, the thought is leaving me a little uneasy. I also, like, really, really don’t want screens that close to my precious eyeballs. But before we get into that, first a little minimalism breakdown.

Aesthetic minimalism vs lifestyle minimalism

While minimalism as an abstract art form dates back to the 1960s, there’s generally two modern minimalist practices: aesthetic minimalism and lifestyle minimalism. Taking the less is more approach, aesthetic minimalism is essentially the curation of clean, architecturally designed spaces that focus on well-designed pieces of furniture, a limited colour palette, and sleek pieces of decor arranged jussstttt right. While it creates clutter-free environments that are particularly inviting to both live in as well as gawk at online, aesthetic minimalism is quite literally (well, figuratively) littered with contradictions.

Aesthetic minimalism’s main issue is, ultimately, it’s the same as any other styling trend - it’s just a trend. Minimalism’s core should be about utilising the planet’s limited resources to its fullest potential. But aesthetic minimalism tells us those knock-off Eames DSW chairs you got in 2015 had to go outside for hard rubbish so you could replace them with knock-off Wegnar Wishbone chairs instead. Cheers, Amart.

In stark contrast to this, lifestyle minimalism is about taking the less is more principle and applying it to every facet of your life. What’s the absolute least amount of items you could live with to still maintain a regular and happy life. The argument becomes less about “what knock-off designer chairs should I get for the dining table?” and more “Do I even need knock-off designer chairs for the dining table? I never have anyone over”. Of course, lifestyle minimalism isn’t a perfect system either. Failure to really identify what you should and shouldn’t bring into your life means having to completely declutter your home every couple months, meaning those chairs end up in hard rubbish either way. Truly maintaining that lifestyle takes tenacity, determination, and actually identifying why you think buying things will fill the big gaping hole in your heart (only really works if the hole is chair shaped).

What does spatial computing mean for aesthetic minimalism?

If you watch the Vision Pro launch video, it becomes pretty clear pretty quickly that every room featured follows a ‘fun’ minimalist style that only a couple years ago would have been described by cultural commentators as the millennial aesthetic. Now, are any of these rooms actually real? Probably not. Did Apple pick minimalist interiors because it showcases the software best? Probably yes. Are these rooms also fairly representative of most western homes? You bloody betcha.

Let’s say spatial computing is the next big thing. Let’s say it’s the next iPhone. Let’s say we all walk around with goggles on 24/7 like we’re on holiday at a ski resort but don’t know how to ski. This indicates a few things for aesthetic minimalism. The physical space you’ve spent time, money, and energy getting just right has become a desktop background. In essence, tech like the Vision Pros has reduced the importance of your space to a jpg. It’s also taken any sense of minimalism away from the space. I don’t know about you, but a seven foot tall video of your kids playing outside doesn’t exactly scream minimalist to me. Just because the space is minimal, and the software’s interface is minimal, doesn’t mean the experience is minimal. It’s pretty invasive.

What does spatial computing mean for lifestyle minimalism?

People get into lifestyle minimalism for a whole bunch of different reasons. Personally, a major appeal for me has been creating a small oasis that’s completely in my control. My home is a space to contemplate, do good work, and spend quality time with my loved ones. Part of this is intentionally reducing the amount of inputs that exist in the space. There’s no TV (yuck sorry I’m one of those guys), no smart home tech, and our computers are locked away in a separate area to the living room. I like coming home and being able to think, not being bombarded by a talking ai-powered rice cooker or whatever. It’s a space we have control over.

Even if I was forced into swapping my computer for a headset and left it in a spare room, the experience looks so immersive that I still think I’d lose time, energy, and clarity scrolling Instagram with my eyes or watching Marie Kondo tutorials on the ceiling or something. Immersive tech like this feels like giving up a sense of control to the powers that be (our big techlord CEOs).

So what’s next for spatial computing in the home?

I’m not a tech guru, that’s not why you’re reading this. But if I had to wager, I’d say the ~~looming threat~~ change in computing is inevitable, but not just yet. Factors such as its memeable price point, difficulty in producing large enough quantities, and the fact it looks really really dumb, all still play a role. But I hope I’m wrong on its inevitability. I really don’t want to put a chip in my skull in the next 20 years so Wish can shove ads directly into my cerebral cortex.