Balance

Balance

Taoism furnished the basis for aesthetic ideals, zen made them practical.
- Kakuzo Okakura, Japanese scholar who contributed to the development of arts in Japan

It is the harmony of the diverse parts, their symmetry, their happy balance; in a word it is all that introduces order, all that gives unity, that permits us to see clearly and to comprehend at once both the ensemble and the details.
- Jules H. Poincare, French mathematician and theoretical physicist, philosopher of science

The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty
“He [Soetsu Yanagi] searchd his way through the developments of Buddhist thought- Zen first, for the lone seeker, followed by Jodo Shinshu and Jishu for the many, the two aspets called jiriki (self power) and tariki (other power) repectively. Finally he reached that point where the apparent difference is fused and cancelled out. That led him to the concideration of beauty and ugliness in art and the the need of an aesthetic that embraces both.”
The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty, Bernard Leach, Adapter; Soetsu Yanagi, Author, Kodansha International, 1990, 0870119486

Balance - loud/quiet, soft/hard, meditative/brash, subtle/in your face, reverent/regressive, edifying representation/biting commentary. Where am I? How much can I get away/how much do I want to get away with? Shock/whisper? Frying pan/tweezers.