Reddit's 'Bro Home' Aesthetic Traced to 1920s Existenzminimum Design
An analysis by CULTURED magazine connects the practical living spaces featured on Reddit's r/malelivingspace to the Existenzminimum concepts from the Weimar period. Established in 2012, this subreddit displays this style through a vast collection of images. It draws parallels to Hannes Meyer’s 1926 'Co-op Interieur,' which emphasized sparse furnishings. Meyer focused on crucial aspects of home life, including relationships, pets, and cooking. The 1929 exhibition 'Die Wohnung für das Existenzminimum' presented minimalist designs from architects such as Ernst May and Le Corbusier. Additional examples include Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni's 1965 installation in Florence and Jasper Morrison's 1988 project in Berlin. Konstantin Grcic's 2014 'Life Space' concept apartment suggested a nomadic lifestyle. The article posits that the modern bro home eschews opulence and ostentation.
Key facts
- The subreddit r/malelivingspace was founded in 2012 and serves as a repository for the contemporary 'bro home' domestic typology.
- Hannes Meyer's 'Co-op Interieur' was created in Basel in 1926 and photographed for his essay 'Die Neue Welt (The New World).'
- The 1929 exhibition 'Die Wohnung für das Existenzminimum' featured housing proposals by architects including Ernst May, Le Corbusier, and Walter Gropius.
- Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni's 'La Casa Abitata' was one of 15 installations at the 1965 exhibition of the same name at Palazzo Strozzi in Florence.
- Jasper Morrison's 'Some New Items for the Home, Part I' was installed at DAAD Galerie in Berlin in 1988 as a response to the Memphis Group.
- Konstantin Grcic's 'Life Space' concept apartment was included in the 2014 exhibition 'Konstantin Grcic – Panorama' at Vitra Design Museum.
- Meyer's list of home design priorities included sex life, sleeping habits, pets, gardening, personal hygiene, weather protection, hygiene in the home, car maintenance, cooking, and heating.
- The article argues that the bro home rejects wealth, taste, and conspicuous domestic consumption, enabled by global manufacturing and online retail.
Entities
Artists
- Hannes Meyer
- Ernst May
- Le Corbusier
- Walter Gropius
- Achille Castiglioni
- Pier Giacomo Castiglioni
- Jasper Morrison
- Konstantin Grcic
- Buckminster Fuller
Institutions
- CULTURED
- r/malelivingspace
- GTA Archiv
- ETH Zürich
- Palazzo Strozzi
- Fondazione Achille Castiglioni
- DAAD Galerie
- Jasper Morrison Studio
- Memphis Group
- Vitra Design Museum
Locations
- Weimar
- Germany
- Basel
- Switzerland
- Florence
- Italy
- Berlin