Wabi sabi, the art of revalorization of the object

A year or so in lockdown is just about enough to put some order in our priorities. Getting back to what’s essential, what drives us, in all simplicity. Some fresh air, a hot coffee, the sense of proximity with our loved ones. 

In our quest for calm and gentleness, we discovered an honorable practice that brought us a lot of comfort; an approach aligned with our core values and the trust we place in durability. 

The art of finding beauty in evolution. In erosion, crevices, cracks, and the natural cycle of all that is. The art of finding beauty in imperfection. Wabi sabi is a concept, a japanese way of seeing the material and spiritual life. It’s a work of acceptance in order to transform the human experience in a positive way. 

In Japan, kintsugi is the art of repairing broken pottery by coating it with a lacquer mixed with gold, silver or platinum powder. It’s a practice resulting from wabi sabi and it sees breakage not as a defect but as a chunk of history that must be remembered. What a great way to revaluate the object, to give it back its badge of honor.

It’s along the path on which we travel throughout life that we eventually come to the conclusion that existence is cyclical and not linear. The sooner we learn to live with this notion of cycles, the softer are the events presented to us. Honoring the cycles of life also means accepting there is a time for everything and that adversity, just as much as bliss, are not permanent states.

 

Lacoste, Dunham’s cobbler

From what I know of M Lacoste, he was Bedford’s cobbler for most of his life. He now has a shop in Dunham, next to the infamous Microbrewery. A man of heart and human, he loves knowing everything and anything about the people close to him. In his shop, he repairs your valued goods to give them a second chance at life.

A pure form of wabi sabi. Make sure you visit him for any of your revalorization project and long live his cobbling shop!