Europe is not a coherent or homogenous continent.

Through its topography of mountains, forests and fields, for centuries invisible lines have been drawn, creating distinctions in culture, aesthetics and lifestyle between the people who live here.

Generally speaking, it can be understood as being composed of two parts: the Protestant area in the north and the Catholic area of the south. The Protestant belief system has not been limited to religion, but informs also work ethics, aesthetics and a certain way of life: to work hard, not be frivolous and to live ascetically was a duty to God.

This explains not only the organisation of Quaker culture but also, and in particular, its aesthetics. In comparison with the lavish, often baroque style of southern Europe, Quaker culture appears puritan and strict.

Historically, Quakers were Protestant Christians who belonged to the Religious Society of Friends, joined by a belief that everyone carries within them the spirit of God, as a kind of inner light.

Metaphorically, this was described as the discovery of the “Inward Christ” or “Light of God”. 

Interestingly, early Quaker texts make no reference to any stipulations concerning outward appearance, but already in 1704, Quaker Ambrose Rigge, warned: “be careful that you follow not the vanities of the age in pride and ostentation; keep plain in your habits and houses”.

What Rigge seemed to suggest was that there was an important distinction to be made between the material world and the spiritual.

Too much emphasis on outward trappings would take away focus otherwise spent on being in “the light of God”. This line of thinking, of viewing asceticism as a path to deeper spirituality, is however not unique to Quakers, but has often been popular also in more contemporary and secular contexts, where “less is more” has become almost a kind of creed. 

Many Quakers emigrated from England to the American east coast, gathering particular in areas around Delaware, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania.

Traditionally, Quakers held an appreciation for high-quality workmanship and a distrust of ostentation, viewing simplicity as a virtue.

Contemporary researchers have found that early Quakers were often also consumers of fine material goods, meaning that they combined an appreciation of finer goods with the adherence to a simple lifestyle. 

In early America, Quakers dominated the political and social landscape in the northeast region. This was a strategic geographical position, as it had regular contact with many European countries, and so Quakers had access to the latest trends in fashion.

The intense contact between the American Quaker community and the trend-driven European markets complicates the previous image of Quakers as a community living a simple life and having simple tastes.

Instead, the Quakers often had remarkably high material standards, while instead focusing on a spiritual kind of simplicity. 

Dictates such as simplicity, the desire to blend with the natural and built environments, and practices such as communal nature of the design and construction process continued to guide many of the early Quaker houses, as well as influencing how they are used even today. Adherence to the tenet of simplicity contributes to the vitality of earlier structures.

It is important to note that meanings invested in objects, be they ornate or simple in design, are neither fixed nor singular. Artifacts could subtly signal to fellow Quakers that one knows how to live in the world, without falling prey to worldliness.

The evidence of their ability to negotiate these two contexts was not always visible in the material world, but was reflected instead in their everyday practices, their role in the community and at spiritual meetings. 

In recent years, several researchers have been invested in nuancing the general image of the Quaker lifestyle, moving past one-dimensional notions of “plain”, instead viewing “simplicity” as something complex and rich, while also unpacking the central relationship between materiality and spirituality that defined the Quaker community.

Perhaps this can lead to a more nuanced understanding of how meaning becomes attached to the objects that define our everyday lives.

Further reading:

Quaker Aesthetics: Reflections on a Quaker Ethic in American Design and Consumption. 

Edited by Emma Jones Lapsansky and Anne A. Verplanck. 

University of Pennsylvania Press, 2003.