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This essay focuses on the importance of aesthetics in relation to society and infrastructure, the author compares asian aesthetics and their use of shadows in comparison to how western aesthetics drive away these shadows in an effort to maintain a sense of maximalism. The translation of the writing does a very good job at maintaining the nuance required to talk about the abstract concepts touched on. Such an enlightening read and not super long either, very interesting for anyone wishing to explore the topic of beauty and its multifaceted nature.
6d ago
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great essay on the importance of shadows as well as the importance of preserving Japanese aestheticism in the wake of American imperialist influence
really puts things into perspective re: how we can conceptualize light + darkness as well as the practicality of darkness in rooms
Mar 27, 2024
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Favorite architect, still alive and teaching in Kyoto. His buildings are all formally bizarre in terms of structure and ratio and there’s a theory that him and other Japanese architects of his generation purposefully do not adhere to western architectural proportions and aesthetic ideals as a silent protest against the west because of the war and the nuclear fallout that many of them endured as children. He is also a terrific fiction writer. I’ve been trying to get him to write for the magazine for some time now. Apparently he used to beat his employees with a T-ruler.
May 10, 2023
Apr 3, 2025
