"Minimalism in Relationships" is a design shaped by an acceptance of the natural limits arising from our existential condition.
The existential human condition is that nothing on the outside is inside. Only representations of things are inside. No person on the outside is inside. Only representations of persons are inside. No representation of a person is the person.
Therefore, no connection with a representation of a person is a connection with a person. Direct connection to persons is impossible.
"Minimalism in Relationships" is a design shaped by an acceptance of the impossibility of direct social connection. The acceptance of this impossibility is the ground condition. The ground condition is the starting point in design, and the starting point in design is minimalist in that it assumes only a minimal relationship between the person and our representation of the person.
[concept fields: designer relationships, Nothing Inside, social lives of infinite systems, Creeping Argumentative Self-Talk, Self-Talk (arising thoughts), All Models Are Wrong, relationship model, personhood, person (data structure), repository of minds, other minds, problem of other minds, spaces for others, minimalism in relationships, Map–territory relation, design, Infinity Aware Design, ephemeral design, human condition, initial condition]
If you would like to reference this page, here is an APA Style citation:
Smith, T. (2026). Nothing Inside: minimalism in relationships. Small-Infinities. https://small-infinities.com/surfaces/nothing-inside-minimalism-in-relationships