The art of empty space: on minimalist interior design

There is a moment, shortly after moving in, when a flat feels strangely right. The boxes are unpacked, but not everything has found its place yet. Light falls freely across the floor. A chair stands alone by the window, and for the first time you really see it. It is minimalist interior design before anyone has designed anything.

A few months later, that moment has usually passed. Not because you bought the wrong things, but because things gather: a second side table, a bowl for keys, a vase that was a gift. Each one makes sense on its own. Between them, they take away what was holding the room together.

Why empty space is not a gap to fill

Empty space is not something missing. It is what allows an object to be seen. A sofa with room around it becomes a sculpture. The same sofa, hemmed in by shelves, floor lamps and baskets, becomes somewhere to sit.

Japanese aesthetics has a word for this: ma, the space in between. It does not mean nothingness, but the pause that gives a sound its shape. A room without pauses is like a sentence without commas. You understand it, but you never get to breathe.

This way of thinking pays off especially in older Swiss flats. Herringbone parquet, high ceilings, plaster cornices: the room brings its own ornament. Fill it up and both get lost. Leave it be and you hand the stage back to it. And in new builds with open-plan layouts, it is often the simplest way to create zones without putting up walls: with one piece that has room around it, rather than many that fill it.

Minimalist interior design in three simple steps

You do not need a makeover to begin. It is enough to choose one surface and keep it empty: the sideboard in the hall, half of the dining table, the windowsill. For a week, put nothing down on it. You soon notice how often your hand drifts towards it, and how calm the eye becomes when the hand has to stay away.

The second step is taking away before adding. Before a new piece comes into your home, it is worth asking which one will leave. Not as a rule, but as a habit. It changes the way you buy: less often, more slowly, and with more pleasure in what stays.

The third is closed storage. Open shelves are beautiful as long as there is little on them. What you use every day but do not need to see belongs behind doors. Then whatever stays in view can mean something.

Restraint is often mistaken for austerity. Yet it is a form of generosity: towards the things you give room to, towards the light that can fall across the floor again, and towards yourself, when you come home in the evening to a room that asks nothing of you.

Perhaps that is the real question when furnishing a home. Not 'what is still missing?' but 'what is allowed to stay?'

Frequently asked questions

What does ma mean in Japanese design?

Ma is the Japanese word for the space in between. It does not mean nothingness, but the pause that gives a sound its shape; in a room, it is the empty space that lets an object be seen.

Why does empty space make a room feel more generous?

Empty space is what allows an object to be seen. A sofa with room around it becomes a sculpture, while the same sofa hemmed in by shelves, lamps and baskets becomes simply somewhere to sit.

How do you start furnishing a home in a minimalist way?

Choose one surface, such as the hall sideboard, half the dining table or the windowsill, and put nothing on it for a week. Then take something away before adding anything new, and keep everyday things behind closed doors.

How do you create zones in an open-plan space without walls?

Use one piece of furniture with room around it, rather than many pieces that fill the space. In new builds with open-plan layouts, this is often the simplest way to define zones.

Does a minimalist interior feel austere?

Restraint is often mistaken for austerity, but it is a form of generosity. It gives room to the things you keep, lets light fall across the floor again and leaves you a room that asks nothing of you.