A Theory of Minimalism

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The explosion of minimalism into the worlds of visual arts, music and literature in the mid-to-late twentieth century presents one of the most radical and decisive revolutions in aesthetic history. Detested by some, embraced by others, minimalisms influence was immediate, pervasive and lasting, significantly changing the way we hear music, see art and read literature. In The Theory of Minimalism, Marc Botha offers the first general theory of minimalism, equally applicable to literature, the visual arts and music. He argues that minimalism establishes an aesthetic paradigm for rethinking realism in genuinely radical terms. In dialogue with thinkers from both the analytic and continental traditions including Kant, Danto, Agamben, Badiou and Meillassoux Botha develops a constellation of concepts which together encapsulate the transhistorcial and transdisciplinary reach of minimalism. Illustrated by a range of historical, canonical and contemporary minimalist works of different media, from the caves of early Christian ascetics to Samuel Becketts late prose, Botha offers a bold and provocative argument which will equip readers with the tools to engage critically with past, present and future minimalism, and to recognize how, in a culture caught between the poles of excess and austerity, minimalism still matters.

Reviews

In lucid prose, Marc Botha lays out his persuasive case for a special status for minimalism. He describes it as an aesthetic movement capable of ceaselessly and intermittently returning aesthetics to its most radical roots, based on the dual principles of the infinitesimal and the parsimonious. I found Bothas authorial voice to be strong and trustworthy. -- Graham Harman, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at SCI-Arc in Los Angeles, USA
More than just a work about minimalism, this is a highly innovative contribution to aesthetics, critical theory and current debates around the ontology of art in general. -- Christopher Norris, Distinguished Research Professor, School of English, Communication and Philosophy, Cardiff University, UK
Based on the principle of the least possible and the least necessary, Bothas lucid and convincing interpretation of minimalism is wide ranging and all-encompassing. Building on canonical works of minimalist art, music, and literature, he argues for a mode of thinking, doing, and making that reaches as far back as the seventeenth century and extends to fields as diverse as ethics, economics, sociology, and politics. -- Frances Colpitt, Deedie Potter Rose Chair of Art History, Texas Christian University, USA

Author Bio

Marc Botha is a Lecturer in English Studies at Durham University, UK and an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Literature, Language and Media at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa.