Wabi Sabi

deco & interior design

Photo: Ogee Magazine

Wabi Sabian ode to transience

38 ogeemagazine.com

Photo: Vittorio Grifoni

Along this road Goes no one,

This autumn eve.

(Matsuo Basho)

Photo: Vittorio Grifoni

Interior design lately has become increasingly influenced by Wabi Sabi, a style inspired by ancient Japanese philosophy. Based on reductionism, rigour and a formal and chromatic simplicity, and recognition of the value of simple and old things that have their own history and memory Even Vittorio Grifoni, the world famous Italian designer, used the ideas of this very particular aesthetics in their collections - but what actually is Wabi Sabi and why should you adopt it in your home?

Photo: Ogee Magazine

This famous haiku, full of noble and delicate nostalgia, is perhaps the best projection of Wabi Sabi, the untranslatable term that escapes firm definition. More than a style or aesthetic trend, Wabi Sabi is a synthesis of the emotional and the rational, the profound awareness of our oneness with life and the environment. Wabi Sabi is an ode to transience, helping us to see the beauty in imperfection, to discover that our unique flaws also can lead us to great strength, accept what is imminent and inevitable, pursue beauty and harmony and the rustic and simple in its natural state. Therein lies the power of this modus vivendi: construction materials are extracted from nature, interiors are austere and asymmetrical, ikebana style gardens are often the only decoration. Irregular tableware ceramics (Hagi Ware, for instance) that have been exposed to the vagaries of time are favoured. Wabi Sabi is a vehicle whose destination is inner peace, neutralizing the harmful effects of stressful Western life: it has already been adopted by many households outside Asia. Initiates in this concept are advised to maintain their environments as closely as possible to the essence of Wabi Sabi:

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