Inspired Design: Japan's Traditional Arts

About this book

Almost every visitor to Japan becomes fascinated by locally manufactured objects perhaps a pair of chopsticks that cleverly employs the node of a bamboo stem a box of matches with bold calligraphy or an artistic arrangement of steppingstones in the garden of a temple the designs of which reveal a unique genius unlike anything that is seen elsewhere. The Japanese artisan seems to have an uncanny knack of being able to look at basic materials clay fabric or metal and imagine what he can make out of them in a way that is markedly different from the way that they are looked at in other countries. The introductory essay addresses how this unique genius is inspired by the extraordinarily rich nature of the Japanese islands and the aesthetic principles of Zen Buddhism. The far-reaching influence that tea-masters had on artistic directions is discussed along with the differences seen in arts made for the main social groups of historic Japan: nobility samurai warriors farmers and merchants. The way that the Japanese perceive and appreciate beauty is explained along with their particular vocabulary for easthetic concepts. These include such nuances as suggestivity asymmetry transience profundity and negative space. The three main parts of the book are devoted to arts made from animal products including imported ivory turtle-shell stag-antler leather and silk; arts made from vegetable products including wood bamboo straw lacquer fibres and paper; and arts made from mineral products such as stone ceramic and metals. Lavish colour illustrations together with informative captions show many previously-unpublished objects from Japanese American and European museums and private collectors. A glossary of Japanese terms is included.