The power and quality of simplicity

“Simplicity is the most difficult thing to secure in this world; it is the last limit of experience and the last effort of genius.”

George Sand

What is the power of simplicity? Why is less more?

Sometimes adopting a minimalist approach, whether it be in art, writing, or in any other creative endeavour, can be a really effective way of delivering a powerful, yet simple, message.

“There is in art the notion of less is more, which is to say, you don’t torture a painting that has already confessed.”

 Robert Breault

The painting above could not be more basic. A limited palette in art can create a sense of focussed unity, elegant simplicity, good composition, and harmony.

In the case of this image, the limited choice of three colours reflects the theme… the limitations of life in a prison, with very few options on offer.

The simplicity of colour and line in itself expresses part of the painting’s message; prison is bleak, dull, boring, empty, bare, cold and desolate. It lacks variety, soft lines and ornament, just like the painting.

Life inside is hard and stark, with no way out: no need to add anything else to this work, for its message is communicated, clearly and precisely.

Paring a work down to its essential components, and not ‘over-egging the pudding,’ will avoid the risk of spoiling it. This applies in so many areas, whether in writing, art, cooking, music, science, business, or any other work.

“Our life is frittered away by detail… Simplify, simplify.”

Henry Thoreau

In our daily lives, it is important not to overload ourselves and not to to fill our days to the brim with detail. If we do this, we will not be able to ‘see the wood for the trees.’ (I think I am overdoing things here by using another metaphor!)

Adding too many unnecessary or repetitive details can sometimes detract from the original aesthetic aim, or from the message of the work or creation. It is about trying too hard to achieve perfection; the more we try, the more unnecessary details we add, the less ‘perfect’ is our final result.

It can end up appearing  ridiculously fussy and over-elaborate, rather than being appealing and tasteful…

“A designer knows when he has reached perfection not when there is nothing left to add but when there is nothing left to take away.”

Antione de Sainte-Exupery

The designers in the two above images had obviously not heard of Sainte-Exupery’s quotation!

In contrast, the two images below illustrate the beauty of simplicity…

“I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.”

Mark Twain 

This quotation perfectly encapsulates the need for simplicity, lack of clutter, clarity and brevity. (Although the letter in the image appears long, the painting is in itself simple.)

Being careful with our writing means that we will rid ourselves of extraneous and unnecessary material; such writing will be succinct and to the point. A wonderful example is in the work of Hemingway.

He tends to use short words and short sentences, removing unnecessary descriptive embellishment.

“Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words? He thinks I don’t know the ten-dollar words. I know them all right. But there are older and simpler and better words, and those are the ones I use.”

Hemingway quoted in ‘Papa Hemingway: A Personal Memoir’   Hotchner, 1966

Simplifying creates order and clarity; over-elaborating makes for much less streamlining and efficiency.

Making things simple is not always easy; it requires skill and ability to know what to leave out and how to focus on the important parts of the work. Overloading often results in a lack of understanding and a failure to communicate one’s message clearly.

In order to simplify, we need space and time; space to think, to develop our skills, to use our intellect and talents, and time, to work on producing something uncomplicated and focussed.

Simple Art In Vase – Daniel Garber. Wikioo

“Anything simple always interests me.”

David Hockney

• Simplicity in therapy

Photo by Júnior Ferreira on Unsplash

“The obvious is that which is never seen until someone expresses it simply.”

 Kahlil Gibran

Empathic responses and insightful interpretations are a crucial part of the therapy process; however, if they are not expressed clearly and simply, then can only serve as an obfuscation and mystification of the therapy.

If we do not understand what our therapist is saying, if we are constantly confused and perplexed by a therapist’s use of jargon, ‘therapy-speak,’ complicated ideas and unclear thoughts, then therapy will not be helpful or effective.

This approach will also create a sense of ‘one up, one down,’ in the therapy relationship, as if the therapist knows better than the client, is always one step ahead and has all the answers.

It is thus patronising and lacking in empathy for a therapist to constantly fail to express themselves in a lucid way.

The therapist must be clear within themselves before they can be clear to the client, who will, inevitably, have arrived in a state of inner clutter and turmoil.

There needs to be a considered and informed therapeutic approach, based on the therapist’s knowledge and experience and their empathic understanding of the client’s needs. Only then will the therapist be able to make intelligible and understandable responses.

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough”.

Albert Einstein

Part of the therapist’s role is to find and make with the client some kind of pattern and order in the often chaotic jumble of thoughts and feelings that the client presents.

“Out of clutter find simplicity.” 

Albert Einstein

Questions arise here: ‘When does simple become over-simple? How do we know at what point to stop simplifying?’ Over-simplicity can result in a bland and uninteresting result; it can also mean important details are omitted…

“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

Albert Einstein

In relation to a formulation by the therapist, the writers of a 2005 paper state:

“The tension of complexity versus simplicity relates to the fact that if the conceptualization is too simple, salient aspects of the case may be missed, and, conversely, if the conceptualization is too complex, it may become too unwieldy and time consuming for practical use.”

(Case Formulation in Psychotherapy: Revitalizing Its Usefulness as a Clinical Tool
Kang Sim, M.D., Kok Peng Gwee, M.D., Anthony Bateman, M.D.)

Finding the balance between simple and complex is an important skill in so many areas of life, one that requires much thought and awareness.

• The paradox of simplicity

Complex-Simple – Wassily Kandinsky. Wikioo

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

Leonardo da Vinci.

Simplicity is a highly paradoxical concept; this is because, as da Vinci pointed out, it is a very sophisticated one. The paradox lies in the fact that, through simplicity, we can sometimes achieve more than complexity could give us.

Complexity, of course, may sometimes be very necessary. It can have important benefits, creating depth and intrigue. It can also thwart and obstruct us. Both complexity and simplicity can have positive and negative aspects.

It is, paradoxically, harder to create something clear and simple than complex and complicated. The elegance and style implicit in skilful simplicity is a big contradiction, one that is sometimes hard to grasp:

Traveller In The Snow – Katsushika Hokusai. Wikioo

“Snowflakes gently fall,
blanketing the world in white,
silence embraces.”

Yosa Buson (1716-1783)

The form of Japanese haiku poetry beautifully illustrates how limitations and having to express ourselves in a simple format can benefit us creatively. This is simultaneously a simple yet difficult task. Just try writing one!

The construction of a haiku is bound by a highly restrictive set of rules; there must be three lines, and no more than seventeen syllables; there are usually five syllables in the first line, seven in the second, and five again in the third. The poetry of haiku does not rhyme.

The simplicity, brevity and conciseness of a haiku is part of what makes it so appealing; it often captures the ‘now,’ the present moment, with startling power and immediacy.

“…haiku represents the beauty of simplicity.”

Koichi Hasegawa

It would appear, then, that we can put our limitations to good use, getting rid of the unnecessary, both internally and externally. They can sharpen our mind, and help us to concentrate on what is important.

“The way to get over creative block is to simply place some constraints on yourself. It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limitations mean freedom.”

Austin Kleon, Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative

• Simplicity in daily life: appreciating and finding meaning in the ordinary

“Our everyday lives are filled with complex decisions. We long for simplicity and ordinariness.”

Ursus Wehrli

In order to find meaning in our life, it is important to be able to create simplicity; there is so much that is extraneous to our needs. At times, it is important to our wellbeing to pare away and rid ourselves of what is unnecessary.

In addition, we need to develop our ability to value the mundane, the ordinary, the everyday… the simple pleasures of life.

A Miracle of Nature – Thomas Moran. 1913. Wikioo

“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Seeing ‘the miraculous in the common’ is, as Emerson tells us, very much related to being wise. For example, accepting the commonplace, the ordinary days, people and places, and the ordinariness within ourselves and our lives, will, paradoxically, free us to be extraordinary.

We may become relaxed enough to be increasingly creative and productive.

If we always associate ordinariness and simplicity with the uninteresting, boring, mundane or dull, we will miss the fact that, on an ordinary day, in an ordinary house, with ordinary people, we can be happy and contented.

• Living in the moment..

“The ability to be in the present moment is a major component of mental wellness.”

Abraham Maslow

Staying with the present moment can mean that we will face reality and truth. We will begin to know ourselves and the world around us better, seeing more clearly the way things truly are, stripping away the peripheral and the irrelevant.

It also means valuing our allotted time, moment by moment, and understanding that those periods in our lives that we may see as ordinary, boring or mundane, can in fact be interesting, perhaps quite remarkable.

Are the simple things in life to be dismissed as trivia? Do we deprive ourselves of a fuller appreciation of our lives because we do not see the importance of the basic?

How much do we fail to see depth of meaning because we do not recognise the value of the simple and the ordinary moments in our lives? There is a need for all of us to live in the now, to look around us and take in the beauty of simplicity.

I will end this post with some relevant quotations and images, with a catchy song for good measure:

The Simple Life – Thomas Mcewan.(1846-1914.) Wikioo

“The key to a simple life is to prioritize what matters most.”

Carlos Wallace

The Morning Walk – Georges Pierre Seurat. 1885. Wikioo.

“To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter … to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird’s nest or a wildflower in spring—these are some of the rewards of the simple life.”

 John Burroughs

“Simple pleasures are the last healthy refuge in a complex world.“

Oscar Wilde

“The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine of the light of letters, is simplicity.’

Walt Whitman

© Linda Berman.

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