60×60 cm, oil on canvas
Sometimes all our pillars are thoroughly shaken and we don’t know why are these things happening. We don’t even understand God... why does He allow this? We suffer loss of trust, faith, and hope, but there is no other way but to move on. We might grow stronger, maybe even wiser..., maybe we will never have answers... but life goes on...
"Kintsugi’ is the Japanese art of repairing broken ceramic pieces with gold. This procedure accepts mistakes and imperfections and creates a magnificent work of art.
Today everyone wants perfection, or at least the appearance of it. The broken objects we either throw away or we mend them in such a way that the defect is not immediately evident. Imperfection is perceived as a as negative and we try to conceal it. Not so in Kintsugi where each fracture is considered unique, and instead of repairing the ceramics to make look flawless, the 400-year-old technique highlights the cracks. It’s a reminder that anything can break, but if mended, it’ll be stronger in the fractured parts. It is also a wonderful image of healing and recovering from hardship.
One theory is that Kintsugi appeared in the late 15th century when the Japanese shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa sent one of his favourite broken Chinese teacups back to China for repair. The Chinese masters patched it up with gold metal clips, which did not please the shogun. He called for the Japanese craftsmen to find another, more aesthetic way. They applied a certain tree sap lacquer dusted with gold and the art of Kintsugi was born, representing the Japanese aesthetics and worldview in acceptance of impermanence and imperfection."
Tunde Sebok