Eastern Design Principles

WABI-SABI
 WABI-SABI ( 侘寂 ?)
Wabi-sabi represents a comprehensive Japanese world
view or aesthetic centered on the acceptance of

Imperfection &
Transience
It is a concept derived from the Buddhist teaching of the
three marks of existence

impermanence

suffering
& emptiness or
absence of self-nature
WHAT IS WABI-SABI?
If an object or expression can bring
about, within us, a sense of serene
melancholy and a spiritual longing,
then that object could be said to be
wabi-sabi.
Wabi-Sabi nurtures all that is authentic
by acknowledging three simple
realities:
nothing lasts
nothing is
finished
nothing is perfect
Simply put, wabi-sabi is the marriage of the
Japanese wabi, meaning humble, and
sabi, which connotes beauty in the natural
progression of time.
Together, the phrase invites us to set aside
our pursuit of perfection and learn to
appreciate the simple, unaffected beauty of
things as they are.
 WABI

meaning humble
WABI

imperfect
 WABI

incomplete
 WABI

irregular
 WABI

authentic
 WABI

assymetric
 WABI

utility
 WABI

random
 WABI

elebrates
rrors, mistakes &
mperfections
 WABI

handmade
WABI

natural
WABI
nature
celebrate
d
WABI

natural
WABI
appreciation
of the
ingenuous
integrity of
natural
objects and
 SABI
onnotes beauty in the natural progression of ti
SABI

imperman
ent
 SABI
seasonal
SABI

signs of
usage
SABI

weather
ed
SABI

nostalgi
c
SABI

worn
 SABI

natural cycles
of growth,
maturity and
 SABI

agein
SABI

passing
of time
withered

SABI
SABI carrier of
history
 SABI

temporar
 SABI

transie
nt
Wabi-sabi is a process.
Never complete.
simple
soulful
simple
intuitive
intimate
understated
elegance
ligh
melancholic
meditative
profound
serene
thank you