DESIGN FAILS TOO CLEVER

EXTREME MINIMALISM WON’T PASS ULTIMATE TEST OF PRACTICALITY

Travelling has opened my eyes to the impact of too much minimalism and overly clever designs. Mostly I notice this quirk in bathrooms of hotels and Airbnbs. Naturally every bathroom is different, as is the designer tapware.

The smartest hotel also had the most frustrating shower I have ever had. Imagine facing three taps, without the slightest hint of which one was the pressure, the hot or the cold. One red dot, perhaps even a blue one as well, would have helped.

Sometimes I think designers can be too clever. This especially applies to overly sleek minimalist designs. I would be more impressed if their designs came with clues, rather than a smug, austere design.

Another city, another hotel bathroom. This time it was a seamless bathroom floor (with no drain) leading to the shower space. Yes, it looked great, but even with the shower door and bathroom door closed, the shower created a river from the bathroom to the carpeted bedroom. Naturally that’s a design fail and possibly expensive in the long-term, but again, I imagine the design was sold as to create a sleek and contemporary space.

I’m not saying I don’t love sleek, contemporary designs, but some practicality has to count for something, otherwise it really is style over substance – an increasingly weird, First-World phenomenon.