Canadian artist Jeff Wall’s Morning Cleaning (1999) depicts the interior of the famous Barcelona Pavilion, designed by modernist architect, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The picture shows an attendant in the midst of his morning cleaning routine, preparing to wipe a glass-panelled wall. It draws attention to the fact that the pavilion is not always pristine, and it takes care and labour to make it so every day. It highlights the idea that when the architect has left the building (a theme that British photographer Jim Stephenson also explores in an exhibition of the same name), their work might be done, but the act of inhabitation, of messying, dirtying, of existing has only begun. Existence and inhabitation by their very nature are messy, and warrant the act of cleaning. This becomes a core theme for the book Cleaning, edited by Japanese designer Kenya Hara (art director of Muji) and published by Lars Müller in 2023. The photography project that resulted in the book was conceived of before the pandemic, which makes the idea of capturing the essence of cleaning even more vital.

The act of cleaning is almost always invisible and yet is core to how we exist in the world. Bringing this meditative, slow task that moderates how we live in the everyday to the fore, the book is illustrated with photographs by Taiki Fukao and minimalistic illustrations showing the tools of the trade, per se. Divided into several chapters—sweeping, dusting, blowing, beating, washing, wiping, smoothing, raking, grooming, purifying, scrubbing, scraping, erasing, scooping, removing and clearing—the author aims to show how humans deal with dirt and waste, "if the very essence of human beings lies dormant in the everyday and ordinary work of cleaning.” This begs the question: what is dirt?

Dirt, waste and entropy (which causes waste) demand that we acknowledge the existence of something more than man-made, of the notion that something may encroach upon orderliness. The book then, starts with images of people sweeping and dusting, putting dirt out of the way in simple gestures. Subsequent chapters similarly show people going about the routines of cleaning, with an emphasis on the tools, as they are illustrated precisely in the chapter heads. For instance, the chapter on scrubbing shows images of brushes, bristles, clothes, and sponges.

The simplistic, inked illustrations also highlight how the tools we use to clean become an essential part of our everyday. A section in the book shows how tools in continual use mould themselves to how we use them, becoming a part of us almost. It’s crucial to note however, that while the book poetically shows the relationship between us, the tools we use, and the act of cleaning, it does not consider that the act is usually carried out by tired, overworked labourers who are in their own turn invisible and marginalised.

Apart from the whimsical and charming sketches of cleaning tools, a section depicting extreme scale cleaning practices is perhaps the most telling. It seems to hint at the irrevocable ways in which humanity has polluted the planet, and of course, ways in which our heedless acts are being mitigated. The question of course is, have we gone too far? There are images towards the end of the book, of landfills and treatment plants that almost seem like scenes out of WALL-E, the 2008 animated movie which critiques humanity’s pervasive consumer culture. Waste in today’s world is almost ubiquitous—polluted skies, oceans, even space—and requires attention. Dealing with dirt is not just something we do daily, but it has become an urgent cry for action against blatant extractivism and careless use of resources, considering the natural environment and ways we can act sustainably. 

The essay at the book’s closing by Hara highlights this constant tussle of trying to live in an increasingly man-made world while dealing with nature. As he writes, “That which is man-made should be comfortable, but when materials that encroach upon or erode nature, like plastic and concrete, become widespread, people begin to yearn for nature. And yet, when nature is left to its own devices, dust and fallen leaves pile up, and plants thrive wildly. As a result, historically, human beings have lived by accepting nature to a certain extent and also keeping it moderately in check.”

The book makes it seem as though people consider cleaning as an innocuous act, and it can be, especially in the spaces we don’t permanently inhabit. We don’t normally flinch if our office desks are clean, for someone made them so. Only if they are dirty. Instead, it asks us to consider our daily routines, not just how we clean, but how we dirty. While not a book about design itself, it emphasises the care and labour that goes into keeping tidy the spaces and artefacts that surround us. Jeff Wall, just like Hara, has been obsessed with the idea of cleaning in his work. “Cleaning is mysterious,” Wall has been quoted as saying, “since it is the labour that erases itself if it is successful." Hara asks us to stop and think about what it takes to clean, and what happens if we stop.