Elements of Japanese Design

Elements of Japanese Design  by Boye’ Lafayette De Mente            Paperback Book:  142 pages                    Genre:  Adult Non-Fiction    Japanese Philosophy,  Japanese Culture, Western influence on Generational interaction,     Contemporary vs. Traditional Behavior

Beautiful book giving deep insight into Japanese culture, traditions and the changes occurring today between centuries old traditions and new contemporary ideas and lifestyles.   Lots of discussion on various design concepts in short reader friendly chapters.   The author introduces Japanese phrases and the concepts behind them introducing the reader to several concepts both simple and complex but put to the reader in such understandable language that I think the reader will be completely surprised at how easy it is to discover the concepts offered here are not way over your head but easily understood and immediately able to learn and grow from each mini chapter.    I was amazed at just how easily relatable the information here is and how clearly the author expresses these design concepts.   It covers the similarities between the Japanese wabi sabi principles that can improve one’s understanding of the good and the bad of life and how one can achieve contentment by allowing our minds to grasp the serene in life and how down sizing our things to a point of simplicity will help us to grow and not get caught up in the accumulation of things but just the opposite going along with the less is more concept.     The less we have the more we can see and appreciate that which we have when we suffer from over abundance it takes our focus away.   We become over whelmed by all the stuff but when we choose to get back to basics, we can appreciate the silence of the tea ceremony we share with friends and feel sorrow for the loss of cherry blossums in the Fall.    Beautiful book.   It will change the way you look at things and will give you understandings of the deep emotions evoked by the simplicity in Japanese pieces of art which are mini snapshots artists share with us of moments in time so beautiful that the magnitude, though still will lift one’s spirits.   I recommend this book to anyone interested in finding the humble beauty in life, I recommend these concepts to anyone familiar with the Chinese concept/philosophy of feng shui, I recommend this book to anyone who loves the Japanese culture and language.   Like sitting at the feet of a Buddhist Monk and learning the lessons of appreciating silence and simplicity.   Good book.

 - Shirley J.