In Praise of Shadows
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This is an essay on aesthetics by Japanese author and novelist Jun'ichirō Tanizaki. The text presents personal reflections on topics as diverse as architecture and its fittings, crafts, finishes, jade, food, cosmetics and wabi-sabi (the art of impermanence), as well as perfect descriptions of lacquerware under candlelight and women in the darkness of the house of pleasure.
It consists of 16 sections that discuss traditional Japanese aesthetics in contrast with change and forms a classic description of the collision between the shadows of traditional Japanese interiors and the dazzling light of the modern age. The West, in its striving for progress, is presented as continuously searching for light and clarity, while the subtle and subdued forms of oriental art and literature are seen by Tanizaki to represent an appreciation of shadow and subtlety.
Vintage Books
Translated by Thomas J. Harper and Edward G. Seidensticker
ISBN: 9780099283577
Paperback, 73 pages
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