In our busy lives, it is easy to feel there is not enough time to do everything properly. MA takes the concept of negative space farther, to define a continuum which spans both space and time. Its use can have a dramatic impact on the mood and tone of the finished work. Negative Space (and time?)Īrtists understand the importance of "negative space" which surrounds an object in an image. Similarly, a tea break in a busy day has to be in a quiet place, away from the routines of work - so that one can soak in the serenity of MA before getting back to busy life. However, far from being just a philosophical or artistic concept, MA is ever-present in all aspects of Japanese daily life.Īs a small example, when Japanese are taught to bow in early age, they are told to make a deliberate pause at the end of the bow before they come back up - as to make sure there is enough MA in their bow for it to have meaning and look respectful. MA is manifest in Japanese living architecture, garden design, music, flower arrangements (Ikebana) and poetry. MA is what creates the peace of mind (called heijoshin in Japanese) we all need so that there is room for our thoughts to exist properly and to thrive. It is in the quiet time we all need to make our busy lives meaningful, and in the silence between the notes which make the music. MA is in the purposeful pauses in a speech which make words stand out. MA, in essence, is what makes minimalism possible. However, minimalism is limited to physical form and space, where MA is not. The presence of MA makes the minimalism of a Japanese tatami room so serene. Look at it this way: When you feel there is too much clutter, it is not because you have too many things it is rather because you don't have enough MA. (Picture to the right is the Japanese kanji character for MA.) Minimalism and Beyond
#MINIMALIST JAPANESE ART FULL#
MA is the emptiness full of possibilities, like a promise yet to be fulfilled. The essence of Japanese aesthetic is a concept called 'MA' (pronounced "maah") - the pure, and indeed essential, void between all "things."Ī total lack of clutter, MA is like a holder within which things can exist, stand out and have meaning.
Where there is too much, nothing stands out. Where there is clutter, even valuable things lose their value.
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