The Simple Beauty of Japanese Interior Design

The home is often one of the best places to learn about a culture’s values and ways of life. Recently, Japanese homes and interiors have been gaining interest around the world for both aesthetic and sustainability reasons. Let’s explore the unique beauty of Japanese interiors and the cultural values they derive from.

The Chashitsu: Japanese Interior Design’s Tea Ceremony Origins

In the Muromachi period (around the 14th century to the 16th), the Japanese art of tea ceremony began growing in popularity. The chashitsu, meaning “tearoom,” was designed by Zen Buddhist monks as a place to enjoy tea ceremony, as well as other artistic pursuits like flower arrangement and poetry. Some of the main features of a chashitsu include tatami straw mat floors, shoji sliding paper doors, a tokonoma alcove in the wall for the display of hanging scrolls and flower arrangements, and a ro sunken hearth. There is generally little or no furniture, as tea ceremony is performed sitting on the straw mat floor.

Though the chashitsu was designed for serving and enjoying tea, the aesthetic concepts developed for the chashitsu spread throughout Japanese architecture and interior design. Their influence can be seen everywhere from homes, to hotels, to restaurants.

The Traditional Japanese Interior Aesthetic

One of the most striking characteristics of traditional Japanese interiors is their simplicity. The tea masters who refined their aesthetic over the years valued tranquility. They feature earth tones like browns and greens that are restful to the eyes. Decoration is often limited to the hanging scroll or flower arrangement in the tokonoma. They felt that a sparse but functional design enhanced the ability of the tea ceremony participants to appreciate each other’s company and the subtle beauty of the ceremony.

Traditional Japanese interiors are also designed to encourage harmony with nature. Rather than attempting to insulate oneself completely, the sliding shoji screen doors create a flexible, permeable boundary between the outside world and the home. They can be adjusted to provide privacy while allowing one to enjoy the sensations of nature, from sunlight to the patter of rain to the singing of frogs and cicadas.

Shadow also plays an important role in the traditional Japanese interior aesthetic. The famous Japanese author TANIZAKI Junichiro described the beauty of shadows in his 1933 essay “In Praise of Shadows.” In it, he likens the Japanese interior to an ink wash painting, with the shoji screens like expanses of white paper, and the shadowy tokonoma the place where the ink is the darkest. Shadows are another reason why traditional Japanese interiors are generally sparsely decorated—the endless dance of light and shadow on the walls is thought to be more beautiful than any decoration.

In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in the sustainability benefits of traditional Japanese living spaces. They make efficient use of locally-sourced, biodegradable materials like wood and washi paper. Natural tsuchikabe earthen walls control humidity and provide insulation. Shoji screens cut down on electricity by making effective use of natural light while providing privacy. As modern Japanese architects and interior designers continue exploring new materials and technology, it will be important to keep in mind these lessons from the past.

Japanese Tradition Meets Modern Design

In the modern age, many Japanese designers have continued to embrace the conceptual ideas of traditional Japanese interiors while using modern materials and technologies.

The designer NOGUCHI Isamu’s lamps called “Akari” have gained world renown for their blending of Japanese tradition with modern style. Much like shoji screens, his lamps are made by stretching washi paper over a bamboo frame, such that the paper gently diffuses the light. Today, lamps influenced by Noguchi’s designs have become common around the world, but his original Akari lamps continue to be produced and sold.

With their characteristic walls of exposed concrete, Japanese architect ANDO Tadao’s dwellings may seem like the furthest thing from traditional Japanese interior design, but in fact they are strongly influenced by traditional ideas. For example, his Row House in Sumiyoshi, built in 1976, takes the idea of connection with the outside world of nature to extremes. The narrow house is split down the middle by an open courtyard, inexorably linking the resident’s daily life to the weather and the seasons.

Ando has also cited Tanizaki’s essay on shadows as an inspiration in his design work. Tanizaki’s influence can be seen in Ando’s Koshino House, which was designed to allow residents to appreciate the natural dance of sunlight and shadow.

East Meets West in the “Japandi” Phenomenon

In recent years, an interior design style called “Japandi” has been gaining attention around the world, becoming a hot topic on social media. A combination of “Japan” and “Scandi” (short for “Scandinavia”), Japandi draws from Japanese and Northern European design values. With a shared appreciation for natural materials and a commitment to quality craftsmanship, these two design styles blend together harmoniously, while their differences complement each other. From Northern Europe comes an aesthetic taste for warm, cozy comfort, while from Japan, a taste for clean, elegant minimalism. Enthusiasts also point out the sustainability benefits: by embracing a less-is-more style and choosing timeless, high-quality furniture and goods for your home, a Japandi lifestyle can help cut back on consumption.

Japanese interior design traditions continue to provide insights about beauty to modern designers, both in Japan and abroad. As Japan and others pursue new modes of living that balance beauty, comfort, and efficiency, the wisdom of traditional Japanese living spaces may continue to prove useful.