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'In Praise of Shadows' Finds Relevance in Today's Architecture
Light and bright homes are more popular than ever, but in shadows lie poetry, subtlety and great beauty
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City. I have Bachelor of Architecture and Master in Urban Planning degrees, and over ten years experience in architectural practice, split between Chicago and NYC. Currently I'm focused on writing and online pursuits. My daily blog can be found at http://archidose.blogspot.com
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City.... More »
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In Praise of Shadows is a classic book on traditional Japanese architecture and design, written by Junichiro Tanizaki and published in 1933, then translated into English four decades later; it is still relevant today. The title clearly shows a preference for dark over light, which equates with traditional spaces and surfaces over bright modern ones. Yet Tanizaki's essay is not solely a reactionary stance against changes in his home country; it is one of the clearest articulations of Japanese aesthetics, culturally rooted but also universally human.
His essay has a timeless quality that hits on the intimate connections we have with our objects and our surroundings. He touches on, among other things, tableware, clothes, films, toilets (yes, toilets) and buildings. Much of the essay involves the spaces of buildings, including houses, where the sense and appreciation of shadows is most pronounced. These contemporary spaces illustrate Tanizaki's ideas, providing an opportunity to quote the author and discuss his essay in light of today's architecture.
His essay has a timeless quality that hits on the intimate connections we have with our objects and our surroundings. He touches on, among other things, tableware, clothes, films, toilets (yes, toilets) and buildings. Much of the essay involves the spaces of buildings, including houses, where the sense and appreciation of shadows is most pronounced. These contemporary spaces illustrate Tanizaki's ideas, providing an opportunity to quote the author and discuss his essay in light of today's architecture.
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| "[There] are certain prerequisites: a degree of dimness, absolute cleanliness, and quiet so complete one can hear the hum of a mosquito." In this quote, early in Tanizaki's book, he is not referring to a space like the one pictured. He's talking about a toilet, what he calls "a place of spiritual repose." (Remember, he wrote the essay in 1933, when a toilet "in a grove fragrant with leaves and moss," as he writes, was more common.) Yet, as the essay continues across its 42 pages, this description can apply to just about everything Tanizaki discusses, if in varying degrees of literal and metaphorical terms. It's easy to sense the quiet alongside the dimness and clear orderliness of this space in The Cross House in Japan, designed by Love Architecture, which we'll also see in next three photos. |
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| "In making for ourselves a place to live in, we first spread a parasol to throw a shadow on the earth, and in the pale light of the shadow we put together a house." Tanizaki contrasts the "parasol" of a Japanese house's roof to the "cap" of the roof of a Western house; the latter has a smaller "visor" to allow more sunlight to infiltrate the inside of the house. Within the deep eaves required for keeping driving winds and rain off shoji screen walls, Tanizaki finds the roots of how the "Japanese room depends on a variation of shadows, heavy shadows against light shadows — it has nothing else," as he writes. The realities of life bred an appreciation of shadows. |
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| "The light from the garden steals in but dimly through paper-paneled doors, and it is precisely this indirect light that makes for us the charm of a room." Shadows are created not just by the contrast between direct sunlight and the lack of it; soft, indirect light creates shadows where the difference between dark and light exists. In this room we can see soft light coming in through a bamboo screen on the window and light being cast down the wall from a skylight. The effect is splendid. |
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| "We delight in the mere sight of the delicate glow of fading rays clinging to the surface of a dusky wall, there to live out what little life remains to them." This poetic description of light hitting a wall make us realize that a little bit of light can be more impressive than a whole wall aglow with light. The stream of light cutting across the wall shown — the brightest part of many subtle shades — is a great case in point. |
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Here is another example where slices of light intersect with the structure, surfaces and furnishings of a room to become another part of the aesthetic assemblage.
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"Whenever I see the alcove of a tastefully built Japanese room, I marvel at our comprehension of the secrets of shadows, our sensitive use of shadow and light."
While this Craftsman teahouse in the Washington, D.C., area is the reverse of Tanizaki's description of an alcove in terms of light and dark (he talks about dark alcoves), the quality of shadows is still apparent. Indirect light on the walls and sloped ceiling gives the alcove off the bedroom a consistent glow that is very inviting.
While this Craftsman teahouse in the Washington, D.C., area is the reverse of Tanizaki's description of an alcove in terms of light and dark (he talks about dark alcoves), the quality of shadows is still apparent. Indirect light on the walls and sloped ceiling gives the alcove off the bedroom a consistent glow that is very inviting.
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| "We fill our gardens with dense plantings, they spread out a flat expanse of grass." Tanizaki sums up the contrast between East and West as being satisfied with one's surroundings versus the determination to improve one's lot, respectively. This garden in San Francisco illustrates the cultural cross-fertilization that has happened in the ensuing 80 years since Tanizaki wrote his essay, one that has seen Asian sensibilities infuse Western contexts. The aesthetic appreciation described in In Praise of Shadows is shared by many around the world, but it runs the risk of being a style rather than something that permeates thought and experience. Tanizaki gives those willing an excellent primer for learning to appreciate the shadows of light and life. |
Comments
Paintings by Kirsten Elizabeth Gilmore I love the photo where "slices of light" cut across a wall and framed artwork. My grandparents' cabin window in a back bedroom made such patterns. Thank you for this well-researched article: it helps to see clear examples of Tanizaki's ideas, translated into today's light and shadows.
5 months ago · Like
Rough Linen So refreshing!
5 months ago · Like
summilux In many parts of this article I stopped thinking architecture and started thinking B&W photography. I look forward to reading the book.
5 months ago · Like
TS Associates Great article about traditional japanese sensibilities and there relevance today. I enjoyed Tanizaki's book which then led me to look into 'wabi-sabi' which again is a very rich train of thought that we as designers can learn from ..rather than always worshiping the new & the disposable instead admire the beauty of materials and objects as they age gracefully.
5 months ago · Like
Reef A great article. I have friends who almost cannot stand the minimalism I so love. They always want art on the walls and I always want the shift of light and shadow to create connection with the outside. Thanks for this nice collection of photos and ideas.
5 months ago · Like
kellystevens So nice to see some shadow appreciation on Houzz, I know it's a minority opinion these days. My current house was built based on Tanizaki's principles. It has deep eaves and clerestory windows that face due east and west. The sunlight casts light and shadows across the sawn plank walls and open ceiling of tongue and groove fir. The first time I walked into the house, it felt like I was walking into a poem.
5 months ago · Like
Granite Grannies Fascinating! I just ordered the book. Can't wait to learn more.
5 months ago · Like
James Hill Architect Nice. Can't have light without darkness. I've always liked this photo of the Fort Ross Chapel along the Sonoma Coast for the heavy gloom of the cupola and it's glary sidelighting. 160 years old, It is all old growth redwood, a memorial of sorts. 
5 months ago · Like
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shawnaleeah I have always preferred shadows to bright light; now I know why.
5 months ago · Like
julie77goulding I would have been interested to see photos of Japanese houses.
5 months ago · Like
Granite Grannies (Some of those pictures are actual Japanese houses. ) You know, I've been thinking more about this article, and I realized that while everyone is clamoring for white kitchens ( which I do love as well, don't get me wrong), our most popular houzz photos are the two darkest kitchen we've added! I think it's because the lighting and richness of the dark stone are very intentional and it does create a look that is noticeably different from the majority of kitchen photos online.
5 months ago · Like
Ideabook updated on Jan. 18, 2013.
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