Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Elements of Japanese Design
    Elements of Japanese Design
    Elements of Japanese Design
    Ebook210 pages1 hour

    Elements of Japanese Design

    By Boye Lafayette De Mente

    4/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Learn the elements of the timeless beauty that is Japanese design in this concise reference volume.

    Japanese design is known throughout the world for its beauty, its simplicity, and its blending of traditional and contemporary effects. This succinct guide describes the influence and importance of 65 key elements that make up Japanese design, detailing their origins--and their impact on fields ranging from architecture and interior design to consumer products and high fashion.

    Learn, for example, how the wabi sabi style that's so popular today developed from the lifestyle choices made by monks a thousand years ago. And how unexpected influences--like tatami (straw mats) or seijaku (silence)--have contributed to contemporary Japanese design.

    Elements of Japanese Design offers new insights into the historical and cultural developments at the root of this now international aesthetic movement. From wa (harmony) to kaizen (continuous improvement), from mushin (the empty mind) to mujo (incompleteness), you'll discover how these elements have combined and evolved into a powerful design paradigm that has changed the way the world looks, thinks and acts.

    Chapters include:
    • Washi, Paper with Character
    • Ikebana, Growing Flowers in a Vase
    • Bukkyo, The Impact of Buddhism
    • Shibui, Eliminating the Unessential
    • Kawaii, The Incredibly "Cute" Syndrome
    • Katana, Swords with Spirit
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTuttle Publishing
    Release dateJun 21, 2011
    ISBN9781462900688
    Elements of Japanese Design

    Read more from Boye Lafayette De Mente

    Related to Elements of Japanese Design

    Related ebooks

    Design For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Sofu Teshigahara

      Mar 1, 2020

      Sofu Teshigahara
      2 min read

    • Article

      Easy Japanese

      Jul 8, 2020

      Easy Japanese
      4 min read

    • Article

      Design Deconstruction MINIMALISM

      Aug 24, 2020

      Any discussion about Minimalism as a design movement would have to start in the East. Traditional Japanese design, with its concepts of ikebana (precise floral arrangement), wabisabi (authenticity in natural imperfection) and ma (spatial intervals),

      2 min read

    • Article

      Two views: Japanese Kōgei

      Aug 1, 2017

      Two views: Japanese Kōgei
      3 min read

    • Article

      Landscape Architecture Criticism

      Jul 27, 2020

      Landscape Architecture Criticism
      3 min read

    • Article

      SEEN ON INSTAGRAM @cotedefolk

      Sep 2, 2021

      Tell us about yourself I’m Sophie Rowell of Côte de Folk Interior Design Consultancy in Folkestone, Kent. After being in the fashion industry for 24 years, as an art director and stylist, I created Côte de Folk in 2016, first as a pop-up homeware sho

      1 min read

    • Article

      Find your Zen

      Jun 24, 2020

      Find your Zen
      6 min read

    • Article

      On Korean Aesthetics

      Sep 12, 2019

      On Korean Aesthetics
      5 min read

    • Article

      Best metal Morphosis

      Jan 6, 2022

      Best metal Morphosis
      1 min read

    • Article

      The World Must Change

      Dec 23, 2020

      The World Must Change
      7 min read

    • Article

      Слово Редактора

      Jun 24, 2020

      Слово Редактора
      1 min read

    • Article

      In Praise of Emptiness

      Jun 15, 2018

      I was asked to be the art director of MUJI in 2001, a time when the brand was already successful. At that time, my role was to explain the MUJI concept to the world. I was trying to find the best way to explain the concept and it was then that I foun

      4 min read

    • Article

      Time Traveller

      Jun 10, 2019

      Time Traveller
      2 min read

    • Article

      Sunil Sethi

      Nov 5, 2019

      How do you define style? Personally, do you take inspiration from latest trends? “In my vocabulary, style is not dictated by trends. For me, it’s more individualistic – I can wear anything from a Comme des Garçons to a Wooyoungmi. I do have a specia

      3 min read

    • Article

      A Life Well Dressed

      Sep 14, 2022

      A Life Well Dressed
      2 min read

    • Article

      Read

      Sep 10, 2018

      This picture book — the first from prolific Japanese designer Oki Sato, aka nendo — features a simple cup as the main character. Cute, quirky illustrations tell the story of when the cup notices there is no spoon to stir the coffee within it, and so

      5 min read

    • Article

      Woodturning As A Living Craft

      May 21, 2018

      Woodturning As A Living Craft
      4 min read

    • Article

      Arjun Khanna

      Feb 1, 2020

      Arjun Khanna
      3 min read

    • Article

      Rediscovering Rattan

      Jan 8, 2021

      Rediscovering Rattan
      4 min read

    • Article

      Kodai: A Foot Fetish

      Nov 9, 2022

      Kodai: A Foot Fetish
      9 min read

    • Article

      Inside

      Mar 7, 2018

      Welcome to the first issue of inside for 2018 and what an issue we have for your reading pleasure. Not only are there some of the most beautiful, unusual and creative projects to peruse, but also interesting and diverse reviews, profiles and intervie

      1 min read

    • Article

      THE RISE AND RISE of Scalo

      Apr 1, 2022

      THE RISE AND RISE of Scalo
      3 min read

    • Article

      The New Kenzo

      Nov 22, 2019

      The New Kenzo
      4 min read

    • Article

      Appunti Di Design(er)

      Apr 27, 2020

      with Francesca Picchi The roots of design 2020 A oltre 20 anni di distanza dalla pubblicazione dell’articolo Le radici del design, un’indagine sul processo creativo degli oggetti, abbiamo pensato di rivolgere la stessa domanda a un gruppo di giovani

      8 min read

    • Article

      Il Mondo Deve Cambiare

      Dec 23, 2020

      Il Mondo Deve Cambiare
      7 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Elements of Japanese Design

    4/5

    8 ratings1 review

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 2/5
      I can't give this a high score. The book is composed of two page essays which are incredibly basic and often outmoded ways of understanding Japanese concepts and objects.

    Book preview

    Elements of Japanese Design - Boye Lafayette De Mente

    INTRODUCTION

    Learning and Using

    Japanese Design Concepts

    The philosophy and ethics of Japanese design concepts are revealed in key words that are laden with cultural meaning. Over the generations, the Japanese created an extensive vocabulary of aesthetic terms that made it possible for them to describe the physical as well as the metaphysical attributes of their culture, and of their arts and crafts. Although often relatively simple in their original meanings, the terms were expanded to encompass the basic principles and elements of beauty and design that evolved in the unique Japanese environment. The Japanese also created a variety of ritualized practices for enhancing their ability to recognize and appreciate beauty and good design.

    It is this culture-based philosophy and tradition of Japanese design and beauty that is leading a growing number of westerners to change their way of living to a style more in keeping with human nature, and therefore more satisfying sensually, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually. It’s also the factor that has made many of Japan’s products so successful in the international marketplace and so influential in bringing about changes in the philosophical concepts of design worldwide.

    Elements of Japanese Design uses the key words of Japanese aesthetics to identify the elements that make up the essence of Japanese design and to explain how the elements came to permeate Japan’s traditional culture. The book will thus aid designers and other people around the world who are interested in good design and quality in coming to understand and make use of the same principles.

    Japanese Design as a Way of Life

    One of the foundations of Japan’s traditional arts and crafts was a deep-seated compulsion to strive constantly for higher and higher standards of design, functionality, and quality. This effort extending over countless generations gradually seeped into the fabric of the nation’s culture, eventually becoming an inseparable part of it. The standards of beauty and design were severe for rich and poor alike. Rigid convention and enforced avoidance of all excess prevented anyone from exercising poor taste or departing very far from a sternly graceful norm.

    Thus developed a whole nation of people for whom a high degree of refined elegance in behavior as well as in all of the artifacts of their daily lives became the universal standard. Despite the inroads made by modernization and Westernization, Japan’s arts and crafts and the Japanese genius for design have survived, and they continue to add a special dimension to people’s lives. In fact, no one can spend even a few days in the country without being powerfully affected by the traditional culture that remains alive and well. For most westerners who take up residence in Japan, the lure of life there begins to exercise an attraction that is almost mystic.

    There are two sources of this attraction: the enduring character and personality of the Japanese people themselves, and the magnetism that is radiated by what may be referred to as things Japanese—that is, the arts, crafts and other objects that reflect the essence and nuances of Japanese design. There is no other culture in which design and quality have played such a significant role in the day-to-day life of the people. Not only did the Japanese institutionalize good design and quality, they ritualized it as well. One might say that the Japanese turned good design and quality into a religion.

    However, it’s important to note that the arts and crafts that the Japanese produced over the centuries that became o-meibutsu, or great masterpieces, were not designed or created to be masterpieces in the Western sense. They were common things made in the traditional way. Virtually all Japanese craftsmen were just ordinary people with no claim to scholarly or intellectual achievements. The refinement and beauty they achieved in their work came from the power of tradition—the values, attitudes, and skills that were passed down to them by their forbears. There was no separation of life and art; they were the same thing.

    Sabi and Wabi Are Universal

    By the turn of the twenty-first century, sabi and wabi had become new code words in the design world. A third concept, shibui, is an even more important term insofar as Japanese design is concerned. Shibui is the adjectival form of shibumi and can be translated as astringent, simple, and unaffected. In its traditional Zen sense, shibui beauty is beauty that is in perfect harmony with nature and has a tranquil effect upon the viewer. Shibui, together with wabi and sabi, forms the foundation of those aspects of traditional Japanese culture that are physically, emotionally, spiritually, and intellectually satisfying. Their importance and power in Japanese culture derives from the fact that the Japanese made these concepts primary pillars of their traditional lifestyle, institutionalizing and ritualizing them as integral parts of their culture.

    In earlier times sabi was used to describe something that was withered with age. Wabi was generally used in reference to living alone in an isolated hut with no amenities. Around the fourteenth century, the meanings of both words began to evolve in the direction of more positive aesthetic values as a result of the teaching and writing of Buddhist monks who eschewed all comfort and materialism in an effort to achieve enlightenment.

    Wabi, which refers to simplicity and tranquility as guidelines for living, provides the ideal philosophical foundation for life. To the Japanese it is a foundation that has proven to be the proper one over eons of human existence—the most suitable and the most satisfying physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually.

    The sabi concept, sometimes described as the rust of age, should not be regarded as injecting a somber tone. It should instead be viewed as a way to honor and respect the process of life—birth, aging, and death.

    For a variety of reasons—geographical, cultural, and historical—the Japanese created a lifestyle based on ancient Chinese and native philosophical and ethical beliefs that took into account the nature of the interrelated cosmos, life, and man. With only a few aberrations, they kept this wabi-sabi lifestyle intact until modern times. For generation after generation, the Japanese lived in a wabi-sabi world, but that did not make them dour or joyless. They were, and still are, among the most fun-loving, pleasure-loving of all people, dedicating themselves to the exquisite pleasures of the flesh, refined arts and crafts, and the endless beauties of nature.

    One of the key foundations of this lifestyle was living in harmony with nature—of course, something that all of early mankind did to the best of their ability as a means of survival. In other words, living in harmony with nature was a natural response that did not require any great intellectual capacity or philosophizing. You lived in harmony with nature or you lived an uncomfortable if not painful life and generally died young. It was that simple.

    The challenge and the opportunity offered by wabi and sabi is to live a positive, graceful life. It is not necessary to relate this theme to Buddhism, Zen, or any other religious belief. It is just common sense.

    To help them sustain life and increase the quality of their lives the Japanese, like all other people, used natural materials—rock, wood, and straw. The rocks they used were already sabi (rusty with age). Once cut, wood and straw quickly took on a sabi look from natural weathering, as well. There was nothing philosophical about it.

    The wabi element in Japanese culture—simplicity and tranquility—also came about in a natural way. For eons, life was naturally simple, and with the exception of a small percentage of power-hungry males, people naturally preferred to live quiet, peaceful lives.

    This wabi-sabi lifestyle was buttressed by Shinto, which provided the early Japanese with the emotional, spiritual, and intellectual dimension that Homo sapiens needs to be fulfilled. The introduction of Buddhism from the Asian continent between the fourth and sixth centuries brought amazing technological advances to Japanese civilization, dramatically raising the physical quality of life. But the precepts of Buddhism did not alter the basic ancient wabi-sabi lifestyle of the average Japanese.

    Other writers on the wabi-sabi factor in Japanese design have emphasized the introduction of Zen into Japan from the thirteenth century and its subsequent contributions to the wabi-sabi way of life, particularly in its influence on the tea ceremony and its implements. But the great Zen-inspired tea masters

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1