{"id":17883,"date":"2024-06-18T08:21:21","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T08:21:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/shop-cili.com\/?p=17883"},"modified":"2024-06-18T08:21:21","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T08:21:21","slug":"the-value-of-empty-space-in-japanese-art-and-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shop-cili.com\/?p=17883","title":{"rendered":"The Value of Empty Space in Japanese Art and Design"},"content":{"rendered":"


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One of my favourite paintings is from Japan, a set of screens depicting pine trees painted by Hasegawa T\u014dhaku in about 1680. The trees, delicately painted in shades of black ink, are surrounded by large swaths of unpainted space of white silk. <\/p>\n

Dreamy as the imagery is, the vision of this painting was very real, because I\u2019ve experienced many similar scenes while walking in the foggy mists of a redwood forest or in a Japanese garden. Cool breezes seemed to wrap the mist around trees, creating ever-shifting scenes that nudged me into contemplation.<\/p>\n

That same cool breeze emanated from T\u014dhaku\u2019s painting through suggestion, in the way the pines bent gently in response to an invisible force. It shifted my attention from the trees to the atmosphere between them, which is difficult as we\u2019re trained to admire physical things. The emptiness of the space held mystery and serenity at the same time, retraining my eye.<\/p>\n

The beauty of the space left empty is called yohaku no bi<\/em> in Japanese art. This is a concept borrowed from Chinese landscape ink wash paintings, where clouds, mist, sky and water could be left unpainted. Their presence was suggested by the carefully rendered edges of the surrounding landscape. This artistic strategy resonated with spiritual beliefs in Taoism\u2019s idea of qi (chi)<\/em>\u2014the formless energy from which the universe emanates.<\/p>\n

In Western gardens, we admire the beauty of physical things. We\u2019re taught that gardening is the art of selecting, positioning and tending plants among hardscaping and softscaping. In a Japanese garden, the viewer can also admire the space created by a shallow pond surrounding large boulders, which is essential for the stones to fully express their form and majesty.<\/p>\n

The value of empty space<\/h2>\n
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