I recently bought two books – this one, John Pawson’s Minimum and The recent book by October Press; Robert Ryman: Used Paint which I will expound on in greater depth at another time.
Minimum however is a great visual guide that explores the philosophy of said approach from one of the foremost architects of that approach. This is actually a fairly highly sought-after book that shows that the value of “the minimum” is pervasive in architecture, art, design and every aspect of life.
Pawson, who has worked for Calvin Klein (interiors), B&B; Italia and the Cathay Pacific Lounge at the Hong Kong International Airport, compiles images as diverse as buildings from prehistoric Mexico to the work of Le Corbusier to Donald Judd and beyond. The chapter headings – Mass, Light, Structure, Landscape, Order, Containment, Volume – are non specific to practice and as a result show greater possibilities than one might expect.
Highly recommended, I got mine from amazon.com