Tag: Japanese traditional design

  • Japanese Calligraphy forthcoming

    Videos of Japanese calligraphers

  • Zen Aesthetics and Art

    Importance of Zen Aesthetics and Art for my design

    I have been interested in Zen meditation – its focus on awareness of the here and now and the possibilities of choice – since being a teenager. In relation to art this awareness of the moment develops an ability to observe, then capture in a few flowing strokes the essence of one’s perception of something. That ability is based on years of practice and development of a sense of composition – focusing on tensions and imbalance rather than symmetry. Zen painting explores the tension between the accidental and imperfect and that flash of control.

    Zen traces its origins to India, but it was formalized in China. Chan, as it is known in China, was transmitted to Japan and took root there in the thirteenth century. Chan was enthusiastically received in Japan, especially by the samurai class that wielded political power at this time, and it became the most prominent form of Buddhism between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries. The immigrant Chinese prelates were educated men, who introduced not only religious practices but also Chinese literature, calligraphy, philosophy, and ink painting to their Japanese disciples, who often in turn traveled to China for further study.

    Principles of Zen Aesthetics: wabi sabi

    Zen means “meditation.” Zen teaches that enlightenment is achieved through the profound realization that one is already an enlightened being. This awakening can happen gradually or in a flash of insight (as emphasized by the Soto and Rinzai schools, respectively). But in either case, it is the result of one’s own efforts. Deities and scriptures can offer only limited assistance.

    Zen Buddhism’s emphasis on simplicity and the importance of the natural world generated a distinctive aesthetic, which is expressed by the terms wabi and sabi. influenced by Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, particularly acceptance and contemplation of the imperfection, constant flux and impermanence of all things. These two amorphous concepts are used to express a sense of rusticity, melancholy, loneliness, naturalness, and age, so that a misshapen, worn peasant’s jar is considered more beautiful than a pristine, carefully crafted dish. While the latter pleases the senses, the former stimulates the mind and emotions to contemplate the essence of reality. In today’s Japan, the meaning of wabi-sabi is often condensed to “wisdom in natural simplicity.” In art books, it is typically defined as “flawed beauty.”

    Many Japanese arts over the past thousand years have been  Such arts can exemplify a wabi-sabi aesthetic. A contemporary Japanese appraisal of this concept is found in the influential essay In Praise of Shadows by Jun’ichirō Tanizaki.

    In Search of Wabi Sabi with Marcel Theroux
    [wpdevart_youtube]Z2P8z7kYJW0[/wpdevart_youtube]

    Examples include:
    Honkyoku (traditional shakuhachi music of wandering Zen monks)
    Ikebana (flower arrangement)
    Japanese gardens, Zen gardens and bonsai (tray gardens)
    Japanese poetry
    Japanese pottery, Hagi ware, Raku ware
    Japanese tea ceremony

    Sumi-e

    Sumi-e or Japanese ink wash painting uses tonality and shading achieved by varying the ink density, both by differential grinding of the ink stick in water and by varying the ink load and pressure within a single brushstroke. Ink wash painting artists spend years practicing basic brush strokes to refine their brush movement and ink flow. In the hand of a master, a single stroke can produce astonishing variations in tonality, from deep black to silvery gray. Thus, in its original context, shading means more than just dark-light arrangement: It is the basis for the beautiful nuance in tonality found in East Asian ink wash painting and brush-and-ink calligraphy.In his classic book Composition, American artist and educator Arthur Wesley Dow (1857–1922) wrote this about ink wash painting: “The painter …put upon the paper the fewest possible lines and tones; just enough to cause form, texture and effect to be felt. Every brush-touch must be full-charged with meaning, and useless detail eliminated. Put together all the good points in such a method, and you have the qualities of the highest art”.

    See Wikipedia article. See articles from British Museum collection.

    A key practise is ensō ( , “circle”?) – a circle that is hand-drawn in one or two uninhibited brushstrokes to express a moment when the mind is free to let the body create. The ensō symbolizes absolute enlightenment, strength, elegance, the universe, and mu (the void). Drawing ensō is a disciplined practice of Japanese ink painting—sumi-e (墨絵 “ink painting”?). The tools and mechanics of drawing the ensō are the same as those used in traditional Japanese calligraphy: One uses a brush (筆 fudé?) to apply ink to washi (a thin Japanese paper). Usually a person draws the ensō in one fluid, expressive stroke. When drawn according to the sōsho (草書?) style of Japanese calligraphy, the brushstroke is especially swift. Once the ensō is drawn, one does not change it. It evidences the character of its creator and the context of its creation in a brief, contiguous period of time. Drawing ensō is a spiritual practice that one might perform as often as once per day.

    This spiritual practice of drawing ensō or writing Japanese calligraphy for self-realization is called hitsuzendō (筆禅道 “way of the brush”?). Ensō exemplifies the various dimensions of the Japanese wabi-sabi perspective and aesthetic: Fukinsei (asymmetry, irregularity), kanso (simplicity), koko (basic; weathered), shizen (without pretense; natural), yugen (subtly profound grace), datsuzoku (freedom), and seijaku (tranquility).

    Today, ink monochrome painting is the art form most closely associated with Zen Buddhism. In general, the first Japanese artists to work in this medium were Zen monks who painted in a quick and evocative manner to express their religious views and personal convictions. Their preferred subjects were Zen patriarchs, teachers, and enlightened individuals. In time, however, artists moved on to secular themes such as bamboo, flowering plums, orchids, and birds, which in China were endowed with scholarly symbolism. The range of subject matter eventually broadened to include literary figures and landscapes, and the painting styles often became more important than personal expression.
    It has also inspired many modern Japanese Abstract artists like Toko Shinoda and Western abstract artists like John Cage.

    You Tube videos on history of Chinese and Japanese ink painting
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    Series of interesting videos on a contemporary Western Zen ink painter: Nikolai Jelneronov
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    Other Sources
    Met Museum
    Zen Buddhism and Art  Lieberman
    Zen Painting Google images


  • Japanese Colour Theories

    The traditional colours of Japan are a collection of colours traditionally used in Japanese art, literature, textiles such as kimono, and other Japanese arts and crafts.

    Standardisation of the Japanese colour wheel was conducted around 600AD and western recognition of it was as late as the mid-19th century, because Japan was largely secluded from the rest of the globe until that time.  

    Japanese Colour Wheel

    Consisting of the primary colours: Red, Yellow and Blue, as well as the neutrals, both Black and White, the Japanese colour wheel spins with reference to the natural elements and is used as a tool to interpret the Japanese theory itself.

    The earliest written history of Japan, which was a mix of fact and mythology, mentions the four oldest colour terms in the Japanese language: aka あか or red, kuro くろ or black, shiro しろ or white, and ao あお or blue. However, it has been proposed that these terms originally referred to the contrasting optical sensations of light and dark, clear and vague.

    With time, these ancient colour terms evolved to have the red, black, white and blue meanings in use today (as well as acquiring other symbolic meanings, which we’ll get to later). However, traces of the original four colours persist in modern Japanese. Most proverbs and surnames that mention colour, for example, often involve these four colours. Additionally, only these four colours can be prefixed with the “pure” and “genuine” ma , to give us makka 真っ赤まっか or bright red, makkuro 真っ黒まっくろ or pitch black, masshiro 真っ白まっしろ or pure white, massao 真っ青まっさお or deep blue.

    Similarly, the original ambiguity of ao appears to have stood the test of time. A vague, overlapping, blue-green colour band, termed “grue” in anthropological lingo, may be used to describe the bluish-green (or greenish-blue?) of ao – which is notorious for causing the Western confusion between aoshingou 青信号あおしんごう and “green traffic light.” Or aonegi 青ネギあおねぎ and “green spring onion.”

    The Japanese Cap and Rank System

    The traditional colours of Japan trace their historical origins to the Twelve Level Cap and Rank System which was established in 603 by Prince Shōtoku – the pioneer of japanese unification – and based on the five Chinese elements.

    In this system, rank and social hierarchy were displayed and determined by certain colors. Colors known as kinjiki (禁色, “forbidden colors“) were strictly reserved for the robes of the highest ranking government officials; for example, the color ōtan (orange) was used as the color for the robes of kuge and use by any other lower rank was prohibited.

    The original Japanese system consisted of 12 levels, symbolised by 2 shades of 6 colours. Dark and light shades of, purple, blue, red, yellow, white, and black were used to show virtue and demonstrate an official position. Purple being ranked 1, while black is ranked 12.

    Colors known as yurushiiro (許し色, “permissible colors”) were permitted for use by the common people.

    Many of the names of these colours originate from Chinese culture, where the hierarchical colour system was historically even more complex. Due to the long history of use of this color system, some variations in color and names exist.

    Other pigments

    The names of traditional colours are often related to native plants and animals, especially those used to make pigments and dyes. Certain colours and dyeing techniques have been used since the Asuka period, while others had been developed as late as the Meiji period when synthetic dyes became common.

    An example of this would be the Japanese color name, akaneiro 茜色あかねいろ, which was produced by creating a dye from the root of a plant called akane grass. Another perhaps more familiar example is azukiiro 小豆色あずきいろ, or the color of azuki beans (aka the most delicious thing ever, often the filling of daifuku mochi).

    Colours were also named after animals, the most popular choice seems to be the mouse, or nezumi, which is used to express grey tones. For example budou nezumi ぶどうネズミ, or grape mouse (purple grey), fuji nezumi 藤ネズミふじねずみ, or Fuji mouse (light purple grey), yanagi nezumi 柳鼠やなぎねずみ, or willow mouse (light green grey), and cha nezumi 茶鼠ちゃねずみ, or tea mouse (light brown grey).

    Japanese Colour Meanings

    Although there are these initial meanings attributed, there are a number of different interpretations of each colour in Japan. Semantics vary from island to island and some meanings overlap.

    Japanese Primary Colours

    • Earth (Yellow)
    • Wood (Blue)
    • Fire (Red)
    • Water (Black)
    • Metal (White)
    Earth (Yellow)

    Yellow represents the element of Earth and the directional Centre, but also encompasses links with the Sun and Summertime, along with the warmth of mid-summer, and concepts like the virtue of Fidelity. It also connotes of courage.

    But there are also a number of similarities between both eastern (courage) and western (cowardice) meanings. Saying that someone has a yellow beak is like calling them a rookie, and a yellow voice is associated with the high-pitched tones of shrieking children and angry women.   

    Wood (Blue)

    Blue has strictly secular connotations. One theory is that because the Japanese never worshiped an all-powerful god dwelling in heaven above, blue never became associated with lofty, religious sentiments. As well as emblematising the element of Wood, the directional East, Spring time, and Benevolence, the colour Blue encapsulates Femininity, Purity, Passivity and Calmness.

    Blue was a popular choice for:

    • ceramics, namely sometsuke 染付けそめつけ porcelain
    • fine art, namely the aizuri-e 藍摺り絵あいずりえ woodblock prints.
    • indigo dyeing industry that flourished in Shikoku during the Edo period. Kimonos are predominantly crafted in or dyed with this colour, due to the fact that Blue also reflects Japanese fashion. Young Japanese women traditionally wear blue to symbolise their innocence. Japanese business suits are often made in various shades of blue and students frequently wear blue “recruitment suits”, particularly for job interviews.
    Red

    Red came to be associated with authority and wealth, as attested to by red-sheathed samurai swords and ornamental combs. It also has ties to religion, as demonstrated by the red torii of Shinto shrines, whose shrine maidens are traditionally clad in red hakama はかま.

    Black

    Black exudes dignity and formality, and is used for the robes of Buddhist monks, as well as for montsuki 紋付もんつき, the kimono that bears the family crest.

    An ancient Japanese tradition known as ‘o-haguro’, which is the practice of dying one’s teeth black, considered beautiful at one point in Japanese history.

    Metal (White)

    Symbolic of Metal, White is a symbol of Purity and Innocence. White is godly and sacred places are strung with shimenawa 注連縄しめなわ  festooned with white shide 紙垂しで, or strewn with white pebbles or sand.

    It additionally connotes the West, the seasonal Fall, and the virtue of Justice. Aside from the black cap, Shinto priests are adorned completely in the purity of White.

    Intrinsically linked with the spirit in Japanese culture, the neutral noncolor that is White was traditionally used to represent mourning and grief.

    Secondary Colours

    Many other colours now have significant links with specific concepts.

    Green

    The word for both Blue and Green (ao – 青) was used to describe both colours and the word for Green is a much more recent linguistic emergence.   

    Nevertheless green is an incredibly popular and symbolic colour.

    • Existing in numerous shades, it is emblematic of Matcha green tea – Japan’s favourite hot beverage.
    • it represents Eternity, Life, Vegetation, Vitality, and a plethora of other meanings.
    Purple

    Royalty is linked with this colour across the globe; majestic and spiritually linked with divine rule. Purple is worn by the rich and upper-classes, to symbolise both Wealth and Prestige.

    Pink

    Pink holds great significance in Japanese culture: in fashion, in painting, in art, and in design, among other areas. As the dominant colour of springtime Japanese landscapes, thanks to the fields of blossoms, Pink represents Happiness, Youth, and new beginnings.   

    Resources

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_colors_of_Japan

    https://www.tofugu.com/japan/color-in-japan/