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
What is beauty? Should art be beautiful? Last week during the presentation of Alex de Wolf’s work (one of the participants in this AIR project) we had an interesting discussion about beauty and art. He showed a temple surrounded by electricity wires. He painted exactly the image he saw in Lees verder
‘Perfection is not achieved when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.’ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Although written by the french writer of ‘Le petit prince’, this is truly an eastern point of view. What Japanese people appreciate as perfection or beauty is Lees verder
After one month in Kyoto my sensibility for impulses on the street is unfortunately decreasing. Part of it because I start to get used to the colors, smells, images, feelings. And part of it because now I want to arrive at a certain place for an appointment. The wandering around Lees verder
Two weeks ago I made a questionnaire about living and working in the machiya. I tried to cover several different field of social behavior, cultural habits, use, challenges, moods. I want to make a manuel with the qualities of the machiya for future generations (in Japan and abroad). When I Lees verder
For the second workshop I would ask people to make a bag out of the fabric. In Japan this is a real art like origami, but not widely spread outside the country. Furoshiki (bath spread) is used for wrapping presents or carrying objects in a square of cloth. It’s nice Lees verder
It would be a nice workshop to give people a piece of fabric and ask them to think about how this could be used. In Japan a piece of fabric (tenugui, originally 35 x 90 cm) is first of all used as a hand towel, something you take with you Lees verder
Although we observe differences in color, size and form, it’s difficult to understand it’s meaning. This morning I visited the Imperial Palace. In a big waiting area that was divided by sliding doors, the stripes on the tatami mats differed in color. The guide told us that the room with Lees verder