The Art of Shibusa

As a photographer I am always experimenting with the process, exploring the forms and shapes of simple things around me.  There is a simplicity and subtlety in simple objects.  The Japanese have a word for it, Shibusa.

Shibusa is a Japanese aesthetic principle of subtle, simple and unobtrusive beauty in single objects.  There is a harmonious balance and yet a complexity to the composition.  An example of this can be seen in the bowl with the chopsticks, simplicity of the line of the chopsticks leading you to the bowl and the complexity of the small figure in the background.  Throughout this post each images while it expresses simplicity there is opposing elements within the frame.

Fragments in Time Part 2

I delight in the tranquility of an object I am viewing.  Finding subtleties in it as opposed to dramatic. This type of image pulls me into it. Finding beauty and elegance in everyday objects.  It is finding oneself in the objects around you.

G.K. Chesterton, the author said it best –“the things we see everyday are the things we never see at all.”

In my still life photography I like to isolate my subject against a neutral background.  The aesthetics of simplicity is what I strive for, with a balanced asymmetry within harmonious relationships.  Simply put, my images are simplicity of form, line and detail.  I want the viewer to experience the lines and shape of the subject.  It is minimalism style of photography.

WHY?

Imogen Cunningham when asked which was her favorite photograph, she replied, “the one I am going to take tomorrow.” I think all artists will agree with this statement. So for this post I am going to choose a couple of images and try to explain what was in my head when I made the image. Some of my favorite images were really photographed within my mind.  All four of these images were planned with the exception of the street shot.

The first image is a Styrofoam cup with a white rose. You might say this is a juxtaposition of nature and the non-biodegradable cup it is sitting in. I thought of this image after coming home from a fast food place and having not discarded the cup, I began to compose this image in my head with maybe a flower sitting in it. The ironic part of this image is that the flower is a silk flower picked up from a craft store, no more biodegradable than the cup it is sitting in. However, I think the symbolism still works in a strange way. I also like this shot because of the whiteness of the objects surrounded by black. The shot was made using simple window light with the objects sitting on a black background so that the cup and flower fill the frame.

While making a shot of a painted face of a women at Dia de Muertos, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a couple embracing behind my subject. I quickly changed my focus and increased my f-stop to increase my depth of field trying to keep both subjects in focus within the frame. It was all done within seconds almost a reflex action to capture the couple kissing before the women with the painted face moved away. I like this image because it is represents the celebration of “Day of the Dead” and life within the single image.  A lot of my street photography attempts to juxtaposition my subject with an opposing symbol.  Sometimes I plan the shot and other times it just presents itself before me.

The shadow images are part of a series of images I shot during one week inside trying to escape the summer heat outside. During this time of the year the kitchen window throws a canvas of light on the kitchen floor. I became aware of the shadows that I cast as I passed by this small corridor of light. I decided to try to create a set of tabloid stories with my shadows. The 4-frame tabloid of the mask and me is one of my favorites. Why? -Because like the shadow that follows us wherever we go...so too does the mask we sometimes hide behind.

The final image is the blue plate and the fork...there is no symbolism here just a simple plate and a fork sitting on it. I liked the shape and the design it offers, nothing more.  It is the simplicity of design, a fork intersecting a circular shape.  Sometime the simplicity of an image can be art in itself.  A final note, this image cannot be recreated because I broke this blue plate early this morning.