The modern minimalist movement is “sparking joy,” but true joy is more than a spark
The Daily Article
The Denison Forum
4.9 • 576 Ratings
🗓️ 12 August 2021
⏱️ 9 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Marie Kondo’s mantra, “Does it spark joy?,” helped launch a minimalist resurgence in the last few years—but her definition of joy is far too narrow compared to how God defines joy. In The Daily Article for Thursday, August 12, 2021, Denison Forum Staff Writer Mark Legg looks at the modern minimalist movement and how Christians should consider what true joy looks like.
This Daily Article is written by Mark Legg and narrated by Chris Nichter.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is the Daily Article podcast, published by the Denison Forum for Culture-Changing Christians. |
| 0:07.8 | To receive the Daily article directly to your email inbox each weekday morning, visit thedailyarticle.com. |
| 0:14.7 | Now here's today's news, discerned differently. |
| 0:19.5 | A blue canvas with a single stripe down the middle sold for $43.8 million in 2013. |
| 0:27.6 | A banana duct taped to a wall was bought for a whopping $120,000 two years ago. |
| 0:33.6 | These art pieces and others like them receive more eye rolls and laughs than appreciation by most. |
| 0:40.7 | The banana sculpture is titled The Comedian. |
| 0:44.7 | Maybe art like this is what comes to mind when you think of minimalism. |
| 0:49.8 | Technically, minimalism did start as an art movement in the 60s, and though the art mentioned |
| 0:56.1 | above is not considered part of the minimalist modern art movement, their simplicity |
| 1:01.2 | gets the point across. |
| 1:03.5 | Christian philosopher Francis Schaefer pointed out that art diffuses philosophical ideas |
| 1:09.0 | into popular culture. In the past decade, a new wave of popular minimalism has trickled down from avant-garde art, |
| 1:16.6 | captivating millennials and Generation Z. |
| 1:22.6 | Brands have picked up on this trend, using a minimalist aesthetic in their marketing to reach the |
| 1:28.4 | younger generation. There are minimally designed styles, groceries, shoes, wall art, and |
| 1:34.2 | even baby clothes. As an old Gen Zier, I feel the appeal of these brands. I proudly own |
| 1:40.9 | a pair of Allbirds' shoes. They're comfortable and clean. |
| 1:45.0 | Today's article is not sponsored, by the way. The lifestyle movement of minimalism has been |
| 1:50.2 | picked up in a Netflix documentary called Minimalism, a documentary about important things. |
| 1:56.9 | The popular minimalist and productivity YouTuber Matt Diavella has accumulated over 220 million views. |
| 2:03.6 | Some spouses may recall when they came home to an unexpected mountain of clothes on the bedroom floor, |
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