- Paperback: 232 pages
- Publisher: Kodansha International; New edition edition (Mar 6 1990)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0870119486
- ISBN-13: 978-0870119484
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 18 x 2 cm
- Shipping Weight: 703 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#194,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #32 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Ethnic & National > Japanese
- #72 in Books > Arts & Photography > Schools, Periods & Styles > Folk Art
- #84 in Books > Arts & Photography > Design & Decorative Arts > Decorative Arts
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Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
Unknown Craftsman is a Kodansha International publication.
About the Author
Soesu Yanagi is a Kodansha International author.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
IN THE AUTUMN OF 1964 an international exhibition of contemporary studio pottery was held in Tokyo. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
IN THE AUTUMN OF 1964 an international exhibition of contemporary studio pottery was held in Tokyo. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Aesthetics Bible!,
By
This review is from: The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty (Paperback)
Yanagi's words are so dense, packed, and rich with meaning. He has keen insights into what real 'seeing' is, and how necessary it is in discerning beauty. But Yanagi's words run beyond insight, and have some of that deep ring of eternal 'Truth' to them. I highly recommmend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about what true 'seeing' is, and how it relates to the perception of beauty.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews) 65 of 67 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Humble pie never tasted so good,
By Jim Tolpin - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Unknown Craftsmen: Japanese Insight into Beauty (Hardcover)
Soon after getting into custom furniture and cabinetmaking as a profession, I had come to that point where I began to tie my sense of self-worth to what other people thought of my work. Even worse, I began to feel that I was in a competition with my fellow woodworkers. Not only did I want their approval, but I thought I must strive to be better than them or I wouldn't achieve distinction (and therefore success). Then, via my explorations into Buddhism, I came across this book. It presented me with a heaping, much-needed serving of humble pie by telling me things like: "A beautiful work of art...is the work of a man who is not (bound to) either beauty and ugliness or even to himself." Yanagi was talking about the craftsman of Japan's past who, working with "total disengagement", created some of the most beautiful art objects the world has ever seen. This work was never signed because these were the products of craftsman who "made no effort to express their individuality through the medium of things; (instead) they produced things through the medium of man". As my understanding of Buddhism deepened, so didn't the import of these words. The bottom line was that I relaxed, I let myself enjoy the process and I let the objects I made speak for themselves. Humble pie never tasted so good. 36 of 37 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Aesthetics Bible!,
By J. English - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty (Paperback)
Yanagi's words are so dense, packed, and rich with meaning. He has keen insights into what real 'seeing' is, and how necessary it is in discerning beauty. But Yanagi's words run beyond insight, and have some of that deep ring of eternal 'Truth' to them. I highly recommmend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about what true 'seeing' is, and how it relates to the perception of beauty.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book you HAVE to read, and you'll CRAVE to own...,
By Beyond-Is-Within Also - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty (Paperback)
This remarkable, must-have book is half superb pictures of various Oriental objects of manufacture become recognized as quintessentially "unselfconscious" objects of art (the one of the "top" teacup in Japan alone is worth the book's price), and half short but very eye-opening essays on various dimensions of beauty, creativity, and the aesthetic experience.MUCH generally accepted superficiality (and downright phoniness) in the field of art appreciation is solidly debunked here (read the other reviews for more on the author's qualifications, plus some relatively piddling criticism from a few specialists). The pieces on the degeneration of the so-called "classic" Tea Ceremony and the cult of deliberate "beauty of ugliness" will provide much food for thought. Anyone interested in beauty and its representations will do very well indeed to acquire this truly irreplaceable read. I too wish the book were 10 times as long! I believe it was out of print for awhile -- great to see it available new from Amazon at a reasonable price. Oh -- on second thought, DO just buy this title, rather than borrow one first -- my copy is so heavily marked up that it would have been agony to have read a library copy.... |
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