Mark Ruffalo's mid-century modern living room is making us rethink this fading design trend

We're in an anti-minimalism rebellion. The years-long emphasis on decluttering, buying less, and curating carefully left us with an abundance of overly sparse clinical spaces, and we're bored. 

However, in this minimalist malaise, it's important not to throw out everything we once loved about this trend and remember that there are some very beautiful minimalist spaces. Mark Ruffalo's living room, for example.

The actor's space is a mid-century masterpiece, championing clean lines, a mix of wood and white finishes, and tantalizing texture. It's proof that carefully curated spaces with a minimalist bent can still be stylish. His minimalist living room has us rethinking our stance on this receding trend.

'The perception that minimalism is a receding trend comes from this very particular type of 2010s minimalism to which we've grown so accustomed. I agree that look of all white everything with boucle and inset lighting can look quite dated, but that doesn't mean that all types of minimalist decor are a fleeting fad,' says Carlin van Noppen, interior designer and owner of Fig Linens and Home.

Carlin Van Noppen

Carlin Van Noppen is a Connecticut-based interior designer and the owner of Fig Linens and Home. She has over 20 years of experience providing design expertise for beautiful homes. Her experience in design retail gives her a unique outlook on interior design trends and what people really want in their homes.

Carlin continues, 'Spaces that use a pared-back color scheme, that incorporate natural materials, and use texture to create visual interest will always be in style. It's about minimalism based on careful curation rather than an adversity to decor. The warm minimalist trend is a great example of this; it emphasizes the calming aspects of a minimalist scheme while keeping it cozy and chic.'

The mid-century modern decor in Mark Ruffalo's space fits this warm minimalist mold. Jennifer Ebert, digital editor at Homes & Gardens, says, 'Mid-century modern decor is the perfect design style for creating a minimalism that feels comforting and appealing. It is cozy by nature, but it also uses interesting lines, shapes, and materials to create something that never feels sparse. You can definitely see this in Mark Ruffalo's mid-century modern living room.'

Jennifer Ebert

Jen is the Editor (Digital) of Homes & Gardens. Before starting this position, she had completed various interior design courses at KLC Design School, as well as working across Ideal Home, LivingEtc, 25 Beautiful Homes and Country Homes & Interiors as an interiors writer.

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Mark Ruffalo's living room teaches us that the question is not 'should I declutter?' but, 'how should I declutter to create a space that feels the warmest, coziest, and most me possible?'