This channel focuses on Japanese aesthetics, nature, Japanese gardens and culture. A Shizen Style is about designing a lifestyle of bringing nature into our modern lives. It's an appreciation of human creativity and nature.
"Shizen" is Japanese for "nature, natural, and spontaneous." Their concept for this term includes the creative human elements we bring to nature as well.
This human and nature connection is highlighted on this channel through things like Japanese gardening, Japan travel, Japanese culture and my shakuhachi bamboo flute playing. Think of Shizen Style as a guide to fostering a contemporary lifestyle of living naturally.
This has everything to do with slow living, but also appreciating the moment and living a life with flow.
I talk about wabi-sabi (acceptance of transience and imperfection) and other aesthetic and design principles that help you develop your own Shizen Style.
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Hi, Joshua! Great video! I wonder on which pillar would you place origami, calligraphy and Ikebana? (or Ekebana?) I just love to play with washi papers, ink and flowers. I've studied minimalism art during my study in interior design (was a long time ago...). Found Bauhaus a little bit "cold". Find japanese aesthetics warmer and more natural. "Domo" for your answer...greetings from Québec!👋🀄💛
Great playing
Do you ever see a few strings spanning across a short section of the foot bridge? I saw one in a video on FB and wondered if it had a purpose or was put there in whimsy. People had to maneuver to walk through it.
Minimalism as a modern concept comes from the Bauhaus movement in Geneva. Traditionally though; Japan used to practice minimalism in the form of acetism and Zen Buddhism. This is a far cry from modern Japan which is the very antithisis of any form of minimalsim. Current day Japan is all about hyper capitalism/consumerism. Japanese minimalism is a modern day myth perpetuated and exclusive to Japan's old money, super elite who build these minimalist structures as architectural follies. No one actually lives like this in reality.
To say Japanese minimalism is a modern day myth is a bit extreme. It depends on what you choose to look at. Japan can be a place of polar opposites, with busy streets in Shinjuku and quiet Shinto shrines nestled into suburban neighborhoods. Japanese minimalism is everywhere in design and fashion. Bogler was a leager in ceramic design at the Bauhaus and he referenced having Japanese role models in his designs. Even today Japanese craftsmanship, pottery, calligraphy...all usually still have some minimalist influence. Minimalism in taste and architecture flourished with the aristocracy, so yes there is a relationship to elitism. But those values have now spread throughout society. Yes, people do still live like that. In the countryside most homes have minimalist large tatami rooms with a view of the garden, a rice field, or the mountains. This may not be the same space as a 30 floor condo in downtown Osaka, but they do exist. Our family enjoys this space when we are in Fukui.
I found out that most of the “Japanese” things aren’t originally Japanese.
I would say that it's even part of Japanese culture to borrow from other cultures and then transform it to the needs and aesthetics of Japanese taste. Ramen, traditional Japanese music, some Japanese garden styles etc.
@@ShizenStyle Ya I get it. I do think it’s other nations too. The Chinese for one. Also the US. People think we invented the personal automobile, but it was invented in Germany. In my view it’s not necessarily a crime. And ya it’s virtually unstoppable.
7:42 I see a face on the left side lower with what appears a partial thick sold necklace...I love the affect of these videos. I do hope you will do more. Right now, it's warm here, yet watching this video seemed to bring some coolness in my experience. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing! Yes, that face at the base of the tree is very distinct! I'm glad you liked the video, I will make more like this.
@@ShizenStyle I have a picture at home and noone sees the images I see in it. Wondering if you've found the same thing in many images? ( after you finish an image) Thank you for responding.
Definitely! I notice things later when editing that I didn't see or focus on at the time of shooting. It's like seeing the place for the first time, again.
Thank you, very beautiful. I am drawn to the hermitage or tea garden style. Getting ideas for my back yard
That sounds great, I love the solitude in a tea garden as well. I'll have a tea garden video and e-book coming out soon.
@@ShizenStyle Ooooo! Sounds interesting. Im only in plamning stages. Would like Jap Maple, lantern and water feature (lilly pond)
Great video. I'm doing research on a painting that I need to do of a garden. This really helped to give me a better understanding of the elements of garden design, rather than just painting what I thought looked cool. Just subbed. keep going man.
Thanks for that! I hope I can help you go a little deeper on the subject and you can find your creative expression of the garden.
I’m curious where does bonsai come in ? Beyond an indoor hobby what is the connection to pruning trees in the Japanese garden, is this where bonsai gets its roots ?
Hi, so the bonsai doesn't really play a role in the Japanese garden itself. As you mentioned, it's more of a hobby to sculpt, prune, and train the branches into an artistic shape. Sometimes creating a mini scene that can be displayed inside or outside, depending on the season. The pruning and trimming of the branches and leaves are similar but the Japanese garden trees don't get their roots trimmed or branches wired. Aesthetically they might look similar sometimes, but that's about it.
@@ShizenStyle thank you so much for the clarification, I’m guessing such as maple trees , where pruning is done to show the branches.
Great info!
Thanks for watching!
I always thought it'd be really cool for someone to build a series of Japanese gardens in different ecosystems using only native plants to that ecosystem (such as boreal forests, desert, prairie, tropical rainforest, wetland, mountain ect) or a single botanical garden set up as a Japanese garden where different sections bring you to each of those ecosystems)
That's a great idea! I would definitely go there. Sounds a bit pricey to manage different areas in various temperature controlled environments, but maybe with some governmental assistance.
That stain in the cement pathway is excellent.
I agree! It really makes the path look natural.
I leave my garden to walk in the forest for peace when the torrent that flows next to it gets too noisy. Funny to think of you townies creating artificial waterfalls but mine are good to sit in if we get hot weather in this temperate rainforest
You creating fantastic work, my friend. I just love it. Antoine.
Thank you! Cheers!
Hello Friend. This is one of the many beautiful videos you have posted here. Wabi Sabi is something I've been looking at for a while. I couldn't put my finger on it but your videos helped me figure it out. I have been taking photographs for almost 35 years now and I am no longer the youngest. And that's why I think this beautiful way of photographing suits me very well. I can completely empathize with this way of photographing. But I also find the videos about first taking the time to observe your subject or possible subject very educational. I will of course follow you and have subscribed to your channel. I hope to learn a lot from you about the photographic path I have now taken. Kind regards from the Netherlands, Antoine.
Thank you and I'm glad the videos and the content resonate with you. Wabi-sabi and flow are very interesting concepts and can really change your life. Glad you are here!
@@ShizenStyle Thank you very much for the fast reaction, Josh.
I crave calm. I akso feel like the front entrance or first part of the home where people enter should be austere and muted. The tea garden style is if the person gets past the formal entrance. thanks for your videos. I feel somehow understood.
I agree! I love the calmness of the tea garden. I will have a video going into more detail on this style of garden soon.
Excellent Josh, thanks, and great photos in there. I’m seeing that my natural instincts or aesthetic sense seems to be vey much in line with this idiom or ethos.
Thanks! It's a great philosophy that can guide your photography if you are moved by it.
Awesome in the right environment, not appropriate for hot climates though, struggling with white in Florida can’t even imagine what that would do to HVAC systems 😮
Very true! I tend to only see coastal colors when I'm down in Florida. And you're right, probably for good reason.
Great video! Nature is truly the best reset button.
Couldn't agree more!
When the stepping stones are very uneven, it seems most people would be tempted to just walk on the gravel.
The stones are uneven, but often very meticulously aligned so that you can naturally step one foot in front of the other. Not crossing legs or needing to stretch that far. That being said, it was also designed for the average height Japanese person many years ago. Tougher for tall people nowadays.
@@ShizenStyle I see, thanks!
Mini rock gardens were the style in the west in the sixties and seventies. Flowers and bushes were planted around rocks on a hill or a slant. That's gone the way of the Dodo bird.
Some of the Japanese gardens are a little too complex for my taste, sometimes. The more simple, the better. It has to be incorporated into our North-American landscape. Just a few elements and principles might be sufficient.
I agree with that. Each garden fits a space differently and sometimes hinting at a Japanese garden can be better than a bold in-your-face garden.
@@ShizenStyle Yes. Also, while some look very good, these gardens seem to depend on Japanese vegetation. I remember in the 60s and 70s, everyone semed to have a "rock garden" . Must have been a Japanese influence.
I think it's difficult for westerners to replicate these types of gardens - unless they've studied under a master.
Black exterior + contemporary architecture + lots of shade trees and minimal landscaping does it for me.
That's a great combination there!
Within nature with plenty of green around works best for me. Not so much suburban with very little foliage. And the shade of black matters as well. More towards the grey or charcoal for me.. Especially pretty with there is light wood bordering and doors and pergolas, etc. Great video, thanks.
Agreed.
The greenery definitely helps! I agree, a natural wood accent goes really well with black and chargoal.
Love the look of the black houses…. Stunning 🤩
It is so gorgeous there. Love the Japanese flute. Is that you playing the flute? Bravo for all of your talents and for sharing.
Yes, thank you. This is one of my compositions and my flute playing.
Gorgeous in every way. This combination of flute and images makes me feel nostalgic for Japan - even though I've never even been there.
I'm glad you liked it!
So beautiful and serene…both the visuals and scenery.
Thank you so much for appreciating the beauty of the sounds and the visuals!
俗 zoku: Though less emphasized in Japanese culture than Chinese, it supposedly has a larger meaning than just routine, more of a mundaneness and average mediocre lowbrowness is closer to the meaning, if I may humbly suggest. So 脫俗 datsuzoku means out of this mundane mediocre mess, into something more profound. 🦊🐱🐷
Thanks for sharing your insight!
Beautiful works! Thank you.
Thank you! Cheers!
Thanks Josh, very enjoyable. Some excellent photos - just to pick out one, the one at 2:25 I really like.
Glad you enjoyed it! Rice fields are always changing and fun to shoot.
Lovely. and great to see how the regular people of Japan live outside the city. Would have preferred Asian music but that' s just my preference. Thank you!
Noted! Thanks.
some cool shots, enjoy
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Lovely and true to life and nature. Thank you.
"The dreaded koi pond volcano" Do you have any tips for incorporating a koi pond then? I'm looking at this as fishkeeper who would love to someday have a koi pond (and accompanying garden) as my ultimate place of calm.
I think one of the main things is to shape the pond in a natural way, as in not just a pre-fab oval pond/pool shape. Using some different size rocks or boulders around the edges will also break up the flat edging you often see.
This video was truly helpful. I am starting to learn about Japanese garden design. Would like to design/install something like this across the front of my mid-century brick 1-story ranch. It's quite shady, due west with a huge overhang, which makes it difficult to do a "normal" type of front yard landscape. Simplifying to a rock and moss garden with some Japanese grass and perhaps a few azaleas would be lovely.
Sounds like a nice fit. If you have a nice overhang then maybe look into smaller courtyard styles of gardens.
Not just design. Japanese and Scandinavian culinary traditions are actually very similar as well.
I'm very familiar with Japanese cuisine but I would love to dive into Scandinavian cuisine as well. I'm guessing they have a lot of fresh fish and curing as well with the cold winters.
@ShizenStyle also interesting pickles. Other dishes seem to use different ingredients to come up with a similar end product (example- traditional cucumber rolls don't look particularly out of place on a sushi platter).
Hi there! Just found your channel and have binge watched it all. I have a little front garden I'm redoing this summer. Is it possible to contact you for advice?
U re idiot from us
How to develop this flow?
Thank you for this wonderful video! It will be my guide as I create my own little Japanese garden. 😊
Glad it can be a little inspiration for you!
not even sure where you’d find a boulder in the UK 😅
Haha! Scotland might have a few you can borrow.
Any local quarry mate, or if you have a building site nearby they will find plenty when they dig foundations depending on the area, just give em a visit! We pick them up regularly to build water features, garden landscapes etc
I would be very interested in how bonsai is integrated in the Japanese garden culture. What I took from the previous videos is the impression that these two things don't belong together. But actually they should.
I haven't really seen them together that often. Maybe as a display on a pedestal near a seating area. The pruning and training are similar to what the gardener might be going for in a specimen tree in the garden, but they also have to envision the whole scene working together, not just the focus on a specimen tree like in bonsai.
@@ShizenStyle This brings me to a follow-up question: Do the Japanese actually make bonsai, and if so, where do they keep them if not in the garden? It is hard to imagine that two such "green" cultures, so deeply rooted in Japan, could be so unrelated.
Thanks Josh, and very much enjoyed your shakuhachi playing also. I like your emphasis or focus on the rustic regarding the garden - besides life in general! , which can offset a tendency one might have to an excessive preciousness regarding the ethos. Keeps a warmth and humility at the heart of things!
Glad you enjoyed it! Always trying to find that balance. Don't want things to get too stuffy.
Wonderful, thanks Josh. Got to love those rocks! And to say what a great channel you’ve put together.
Thanks so much!
Thank you for your insight!
My pleasure!
All i say " love it".. 👍👍👍👍👍
Thanks!
I enjoyed your “In praise of shadows” slip :) that’d be a good one to add to the list as well. Great list. I was looking through my copy of Keane’s Japanese garden book this morning with coffee. Looking forward to reading the others, especially Forest Bathing. Thanks for the great subject matter!
Thanks for sharing!! Haha, you're right, that should be on the list too.
Nicely explained
Thank you so much 🙂