Culture Swap: Japanese Wabi-Sabi and Danish Hygge
Wabi-Sabi and hygge are lifestyle and design movements from two very different cultures, that, at first glance, might appear to be pretty different, but upon closer inspection, actually contain a lot of similarities.
In 2016 and 2017 hygge was the Scandinavian design movement trending in the UK and the US. The official definition of hygge is: “a quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.” Hygge is all about finding happiness in simple things and cosy moments, like sitting by the fire in your favorite sweatpants while eating homemade baked goods. It’s emphasis on coziness is perhaps the biggest differentiator between itself and wabi-sabi.
Wabi-Sabi originated in China, but later evolved into a Japenese movement that was linked to the country’s tea ceremonies. It was originally a reaction against heavy ornamentation, lavishness, and the use of rare materials. While it’s difficult to translate precisely, “‘Wabi’ is said to be defined as ‘rustic simplicity’ or ‘understated elegance’ with a focus on a less-is-more mentality. ‘Sabi’ is translated to ‘taking pleasure in the imperfect.’”
Hygge tends to focus on coziness more than Wabi-Sabi does, and Wabi-Sabi tends to focus on imperfection more than Hygge does. However, their underlying principles are very similar. They both rely on the ideas of simplicity, authenticity and craftmanship.
Author Meik Wiking, who wrote The Little Book of Hygge, has stated “Anything made by real craftsmanship — objects created out of wood, ceramics, wool, leather and so on — is hyggeligt.” Diane Durston, in her book Wabi Sabi — The Art of Everyday Life, describes wabi as: “tranquil simplicity; austere elegance; unpolished, imperfect, or irregular beauty; rusticity; things in their simplest, most austere and natural state; a serene, transcendental state of mind.” Both hygge and wabi-sabi have an innate connection to rusticity and authenticity, which translates itself into a connection with nature and the natural objects you surround yourself with.
Lastly, both hygge and wabi-sabi find the passage of time beautiful, and don’t work to combat it. Wiking states, “The rustic, organic surface of something imperfect, and something that has been or will be affected by age appeals to the touch of hygge.” Durston echos this thought in describing her definition of ‘Sabi’: “beauty that treasures the passage of time, and with the lonely sense of impermanence it evokes. It has also been defined as the patina that age bestows, or as that which is true of the natural cycle of birth and death.”
