The cultural concept I will be discussing is that of Wabi-sabi and how I came to see it as not only engrossing, but increasingly relevant in Westernized culture. By no stretch of the imagination have I ever considered myself perfect. I have flaws and short comings that often fall beyond my control. When I look at myself, I see beauty. But the beauty I see does not always agree with the visual experiences of others. As I get older, my flaws are maturing and have started to show signs of age. Extra weight, gray hair and wrinkles are all natural occurrences in the human experience. Despite the naturalness, these same issues are often seen as negative, and I have to deal with it.
In today’s pop culture, being flawed is now ‘in’. Musicians from Beyonce to Kendrick Lamar to Taylor Swift all sing lyrics about embracing who you are, Flaws and All (Knowles,…show more content… Wabi-sabi is a visceral appreciation of beauty that reflects the constant movement of the world. It is in unpretentious beauty that broken, imperfect, or even decayed, can exist. The contrast to Western principles is rooted in the contrast to our philosophical premises of power, authority, dominance, engagement, and control, whether of others or of nature. The guiding principles of Wabi-sabi fall into nine categories. (Koren, 1994) Although the following category descriptions are in reference to the act of making art, I have found they can be applied to a myriad of real life scenarios.
1.Type - Materials used are organic, not synthetic. They should not be polished or cleaned or adulterated to appear new or contrived.
2.Form - The object is shaped naturally or organically, showing natural or intentional asymmetry or irregularity.
3.Texture - In keeping with the material used, the texture remains rough, uneven, variegated, and random, with every appearance of pursuing an unimpeded natural