Some words about the Japanese concept of
wabi-sabi by Leonard Koren*:
“All things are impermanent...All
things are imperfect....All things are incomplete.” “Things are either devolving toward,
or evolving from, nothingness.” “Irregular... intimate...
unpretentious... earthy... murky... simple.” "Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers,
Poets and Philosophers", and "Wabi-Sabi, Further Thoughts".
“Throughout history a rational
understanding of wabi-sabi has been intentionally thwarted”, says
Koren, and he doubts that the digital world can be compatible with the
experiential world of wabi-sabi.
But through the medium of the
internet, I offer these photographs to suggest the concept of
wabi-sabi; to trigger your memories of things experienced, or to provoke
your curiosity about everyday objects in the process of being, becoming,
ending.
Click on photo for slide show.
Click on photo for slide show.
Wabi
stems from the root wa, which refers to harmony, peace, tranquility,
and balance. ... poetically it has come to mean simple, unmaterialistic,
humble by choice, and in tune with nature. ... Sabi by itself means
'the bloom of time.' It connotes natural progression - tarnish,
hoariness, rust - the extinguished gloss of that which once sparkled." Tadao Ando, "What Is Wabi-Sabi?" at www.nobleharbor.com/tea/chado
