Quote of the day by Constantin Brâncuși: "Simplicity is not an objective in art, but one achieves simplicity despite one's self by entering into the real sense of things."

Simplicity, minimalism, less is more, all these have been the buzzwords surrounding us, everywhere from social media to social circles. Simplicity is sold to us as calm, clean, and effortless, which is just the opposite of the cluttered, noisy world we actually live in.

It sounds easy, but it rarely is!Anyone who has tried to write a short email, design a minimalist room, or explain a complicated idea in plain words knows the secret that keeping it simple is hard.But do we ever think where it all began?

The man behind the words

Constantin Brâncuși was a Romanian-born French sculptor who lived from 1876 to 1957, and was a pioneer of modern abstract sculpture, known for reducing natural forms and keeping it towards being pure, elegant, and simple.He reflected on this wise idea that continues to be remembered today.

Quote of the day

"Simplicity is not an objective in art, but one achieves simplicity despite one's self by entering into the real sense of things."— Constantin Brâncuși

What does the quote actually mean?

Brâncuși says that you can't simply decide to be simple. When one tries to achieve simplicity, they usually get something that might not come from within and might seem fake. Real simplicity arrives sideways, almost by accident, as a reward for understanding the subject deeply.

The right way to achieve it is through "the real sense of things", or the essence underneath the surface, as the real side of things is not the external form but the deeper meaning of things. Once you truly understand what something is, the unnecessary parts begin to fall away on their own.

Why is it still important today?

While simplicity and minimalism are the buzzwords nowadays, Brâncuși's quote remains more relevant than ever. He'd likely say much of what we call simple is just simplicity as decoration, with a clean look with no real understanding underneath.A clean app interface is what's left after someone deals with messy ideas until only the essential remains. If we try to remove something without understanding it, the result we have is not simplicity, it is something broken or hollow.That makes his words a quiet test for our own work. Before calling anything "simple," it's worth asking whether we've actually entered into the real sense of it, or merely tidied the surface.