Wabi-sabi – A life of Fulfillment

"Droll is not what you see but what others see", To bring a meaning out of it takes contest and that is what makes life stimulating and overcoming them is what makes it meaningful. Have you ever thought how controlled we are in your quotidian considerations which are increasingly killing our inner selves? Well, sadly this is a colossal benchmark to think about and thus I believe the aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but our inward significance.

'Ichi-go ichi-e' in Japanese Nihogo means meeting something or someone for the first time but to experience it on the land of culture and concord was not my first time nonetheless. I rambled and wandered in my thoughts of escaping all the depraved going on around and I categorically departed by. Fukuoka, Itoshima village in Japan, where I just finished my month long residency program at 'Studio Kura' after almost 4.5 years. 'Wabisabi' refers to a way of living that focuses on finding beauty within the inadequacies of life and serenely accepting the natural cycle of growth and decay) . Sensation of Japanese culture, its tradition and their immense natural humbleness towards life and art brings a greater phenomenon to a casing crowd of desirability.

In Studio Kura, we had two houses to stay. Me and my fellow roommates Charlotte Clermont who is a talented video artist and an awesome photographer Inker Janttishared one house;including Cathy Laudenbach (Australia), Thomas Hoeren(Germany), Anne-Sophie Guillet(France) all visual artists and one KatsuraIshikawa were my other family for a month as my creative soul mates. I can still feel their subtle voice and untold affection, collaboration around me. An atmosphere theater an imperative part of any creative soul. Artists may portray different perspectives, but for me this residency in Fukuoka was an amazingly Creative gesticulation which Japanese would say 'Kintsukuroi' (the art of repairing a broken pottery with gold or silver and that the piece becomes additionally valuable and sturdier for being broken after a rebirth) as after 1stJuly 2016, I have witnessed that my city was literally broke and it shook me from my core. I desired to be touched by the gratifying absence of distress which emphasises on simplicity of contentment and hence chose a place where I thought I would be able to get back what I thought I lost. I got a golden patch now through me to be able to kiss the soothing range of feel it all again.

Ikisan is one of the places in Itoshima, far away from the cities; it takes 25 stations from the Fukuoka city, under Kyushu Prefecture. I wanted to be immersed in nature and Japanese beliefs to let myself be touched by every come upon marvels. Studio Kura was in a rural area close to rice fields and the sea which I felt were exactly the rudiments I needed to reconnect with. Drowned in countryside, walking

for two hours I could heal myself from the illness of urban bedlam. Observe green 24/7 and the changes of colors at different times of the day and night. Able to texture the smell of the heat, cold and silence, watch each small difference appear from the breeze on a leaf or on the surface of water. Illumination of the energy of its flora and culture.

"Be passionate about everything that passes by that deep rush leading to manifest life all over again"

Walking and the link with nature is a mysterious relationship. I felt grateful to be an artist. I knew this will lift my spirit up to explore my art at an unknown path to surprise myself as well.I closely observed all the attitude, elements and objects those passed by and made the most out of it with boundless curiosity. It's very important for me to be totally involved without any hesitancy. I intensely believe it is important as an artist to embrace and sense every feature of the existence around me - still, moving, silent and what not. It was in one word, 'Sugoi' - awesome!

Life is 10% of what happens to us and 90 percent how we react to it. Thus art enables artists to visualise the extensive form of reaction which ought to be fully involved with environment, society, people and surroundings. For me this isolated Ikisan village of Japan was extremely engaging as the entire artist those were with me in the residency got their own perspectives and expression to react for and express through their own medium of fields. Some were into photographs, video or sight specific. In the inaudible nature of the village, each of us was engaging in deeper aesthetes of passionate journey. For me it was always an inner search of belongings of the place and inspiring my soul to sooth in and soak into the power of nature that allow us create the unknown.

To be continued next week…

The writer is Visual Artist, Preema's Atelier, President-WIL(Women in Leadership)