Category: Japan
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Sublime simplicity
Sublime simplicity The house:a tatami-mat floor, sliding walls, a roof.The pinnacle of Japanese architecture. The walls slide open.The spectacle begins. Photo of the week: Katsura Villa, Kyoto, Japan 2008
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Zen sense
Zen sense A small space that feels large. It is, above all, a matter of the mind. Japanese Zen masters are experts at making the most of small spaces. Take a look at this small, enclosed garden: a striking rock, a stone water basin, a raked gravel bed, a few shrubs and small trees, a…
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Natura Artis Magistra
Natura Artis Magistra With this title I am not aiming at the Zoo in Amsterdam, but at the meaning of the words: nature is the teacher of art. Nature as source of inspiration for the arts. I took the photo just outside the wall of Chisaku-in, a temple in Kyoto. It looks like a nice…
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Living doll
Living doll Apart from the phallus shrine that I showed you in last week’s post, I also came across – at the same flea market – this exquisite Geisha doll. The doll almost seems alive, radiating the modesty of a real Geisha. A masterly example of true Japanese craftsmanship! Photo of the week: Geisha doll…
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Phallus shrine
Phallus shrine A wooden phallus in a small wooden shrine. How did this piece end up at the flea market of Kitano-Tenman-gu? Has it figured on someone’s house altar – or bedside table – and fallen out of favour? We can only fantasize about it and think up vivid stories, but we don’t know. It…
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The umbrellas of Kinkaku-ji
The umbrellas of Kinkaku-ji Again three, and well placed, like in last weeks picture! The fact that these three colourful umbrellas have come together in Kinkaku-ji Park is pure coincidence.Whether it’s deliberate or by chance: for me, as a photographer, it’s only the result that counts. Photo of the week: Kinkaku-ji (Golden Temple) park, Kyoto,…
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Two or three
Two or three Sometimes I can be perfectly happy with two, at other times it has to be three. So it seems. If it had been two I would not have annoyed you with this picture, would not have taken it in the first place. Three makes all the difference here. See how beautifully they…
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A roof of dense foliage
A roof of dense foliage Without the support posts, this living monument would soon collapse under its own weight. A tree on crutches – not to walk with, but to stay upright.Whether it’s a freak of nature or a labour of love – it’s certainly impressive. Photo of the week: Nagamachi samurai district, Kanazawa, Japan 2008
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Blue Planet Sky
Blue Planet Sky So this is what the girl in last week’s post saw through her camera, or rather it’s what I saw through my camera. Looking at the sky can be a nice activity, especially when there is some movement of clouds. Looking at the sky through a fixed frame is even more interesting.…
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Two-way masks
Two-way masks And what does the girl with the camera see up there? The answer to that has to wait till next week’s post. Here I’m interested in the girl with the mask, sitting in this spotlessly clean environment. I always thought that these worker’s masks were meant to protect oneself against fine dust and other unhealthy particles…
καιρός remembered 