Friday, April 12, 2013

Japanese design principles


Scandinasian by Lendalia, would not exist if I haven't moved to Japan.
A few years ago I felt in love with Sweden and I started  slowly to appreciate more and more Scandinavia and all the interior design created there.
The exactly same thing is happening to me again here in Japan. I already appreciated Japanese design before, but now i start understanding more about the culture, mentality, way of life and what makes Japanese design so interesting and special.
What caught my attention first was the design simplicity.
After reading the Japanese design principles, everything, every object, every new design makes more sense to me.
Today I would like to share those principles with you.


The Zen principles of Aesthetics are derived from the Buddhism beliefs of Anicca or Impermanence where “everything, without exception, is constantly in flux, even planets, stars and gods".


THE PRINCIPLES:

KANSO (simple)
Elimination of ornate and things of simplicity by nature expresses their truthfulness. Neat, frank and uncomplicated.

FUKINSEI (imbalanced)
Asymmetry, odd numbers, irregularity, unevenness, imbalance is used as a denial of perfection as perfection and symmetry does not occur in nature.


KOKOU (austere)
Basic, weathered bare essentials that are aged and unsensuous. Evokes sternness, forbiddance, maturity and weight.

SHIZEN (natural)
Raw, natural and unforced creativity without pretence. True naturalness is to negate the naive and accidental.

YUGEN (subtle profound)
Suggest and not reveal layers of meaning hidden within. Invisible to the casual eye and avoiding the obvious.

DATSUZOKU (unworldly)
Transcendence of conventional and traditional. Free from the bondage of laws and restrictions. True creativity.

SEIJAKU (calm)
Silence and tranquility, blissful solitude. Absence of disturbance and noise from one’s mind, body and surroundings.





 




 
Pictures via Analogue Life & Source via Thinkingalaud.

4 comments:

  1. Nice post, sweety! And very interesting! I've learned a few new things. Thnx. Big hug! xoxox

    ReplyDelete