Expressive Space: Japanese Style

Author: Betsh Publishing Co., Ltd.
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-09-01
Features: After the Meiji Restoration, amidst Westernization, Western furniture arrived in Japan along with Western architecture and decorative arts. With reasons such as rational design, comprehensive systems, and ergonomic compliance, it exerted a significant impact on traditional Japanese home furnishings. However, traditional homes did not vanish. To preserve their Yamato national identity, modern Japanese homes still prioritize simplicity, concentrating Japanese design in a specific space. In the residences of ordinary Japanese people, the living room, dining room, and kitchen—public areas—are furnished with modern items like sofas and chairs in a "Western-style room." In contrast, bedrooms and leisure areas—private areas—are furnished with traditional elements such as tatami mats, ash-dusted walls, cedar boards, and paper lattice sliding doors in a "Japanese-style room." The lifestyle of blending "East and West" is widely accepted, while fully Western or fully Japanese styles are rarely seen today. To this day, Western furniture remains dominant in Japan, and the dual-structure approach continues to be practiced.