わびさび wabisabi

I read ‘Wabi Sabi’ by Beth Kempton in 2 days earlier this year, and have thought about it ever since. The bi-line, “Japanese wisdom for a perfectly imperfect life” neatly sums up the book’s contents, which delve into the Japanese notion of wabi sabi and how it can be implemented into the everyday.

Wabi sabi, Kempton writes, is difficult to understand. She states that if you “asked a Japanese person to explain wabi sabi, they will most likely recognise it, but will […] struggle to formulate the definition.” She mentions that this is not due to their lack of knowledge, but rather due to the indefinable nature of the concept, and that “the understanding is intuitive,” and therefore difficult to outline.

Part of the book delves in to the idea of the small, natural moments that we come across in our everyday lives, but which we are too busy or stressed or rushed to notice. Examples include the way rays of sunlight shine through the trees (the Japanese word for this is 木漏れ日 komorebi), the sounds of crickets in the evening, or the short time that the cherry blossoms are in bloom before their petals fall to the ground. None of these moments are eternal. They are all fleeting, and so carry with them a beauty as well as a sense of sadness that they will not last forever. However this cyclical changing of nature represents the continuation of life, and this all ties in to the concept of wabi sabi.

How does this tie in to my project? I want to evoke the feeling of wabi sabi in my work, particularly in the images that will represent the passing of time, and the small intimate moments within the everyday.

I feel that Rinko Kawauchi, who I wrote about in this research blog earlier, encapsulates the feeling of wabi sabi in her images. There is the simplicity, the subtle quiet, and the undertone of forlorn that viewers can feel rather than see.

Unfortunately, I borrowed and returned this book before the COVID-19 pandemic forced all libraries to close, so the passages I have posted do not represent the book in its entirety. However I will use the knowledge I have internalised to begin applying this concept to my work, and reference the book again once I regain access to it.

Kempton, B 2018, Wabi Sabi, 1st edn, Piatkus, London.