This is the cup from which I take tea everyday day. You can see clearly that’s handmade: the shape of the cup is irregular, the surface has little cracks (raku fired) and the painting is rustic. With our western values we should say it’s not a piece of beauty, with Lees verder
When people say “there’s no communication between parents and children”, this is an American way of thinking. In Japan we didn’t need spoken communication between parents and children. A glance at the face, a glance at the back and we understood enough. That was our way of thinking, and it Lees verder
One of my daily routines is taking my bike, opening the entrance door, taking out my bike and closing the door.
Sometimes the door is slightly open, but then I close it afterwards.No locks in my house, so no problem with lost or forgotten keys. This sliding door only a few Lees verder
Last month I described two teahouses, one by Terunobu Fujimori (30-10-2011) and the other by students of the art academy (31-10-2011), where you had to crawl through a low entrance door to get in. It felt rather uncomfortable and a bit like a joke. But lately I had a discussion Lees verder
In the survey that I did last weeks, I asked about the activities mostly related to the machiya. Ikebana (flower arrangement) and tea ceremony ended both on the first place. Zen meditation and calligraphy both on the second. I would have expected that far more people would have chosen for Lees verder
Sitting on a tatami mat and looking outside into the garden is one of the most beautiful ways to wash away daily frustration. It takes some time, but than you can experience all the senses to relax and enjoy the japanese tradition. – Overlook the garden though the bamboo blinds Lees verder
The size of a tatami mat (90 x180 cm) is not only an acre, but also the dimensions for the altitude of the space. This makes the space in the tatami room so elegant and simple. Roland Barthes wrote in his book L’Empire des signes: “This means the space without Lees verder
When I asked Nihonga painter (traditional japanese painter) Taro Yamamoto, if making a copy of one of his paintings would be a problem, he answered ‘no, I sometimes reuse parts of my paintings or copy them if people ask so’. He stated that art and crafts are very much related Lees verder
For traditional carpenters looking at the wood joints of the machiya, old wooden houses and temples must be like heaven. And ‘fortunately’ most of the houses and temples are burned down or rebuilt. So this technique is still alive and passed to future generations. I attended a meeting for people Lees verder
For years I’ve been interesting in what people take with them when they have to leave, what kind of immaterial things like memories, thoughts, images, smells are important for people’s memory and future. I made cupboards and suitcases for them. Although people in Japan try to keep their rooms empty, Lees verder