Articles by Bo Mackison

Wabi-Sabi--First in a Series

Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack, a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in. –Leonard Cohen

I am working in my photography archives, inspired to begin a new project that celebrates the beauty in the old, the worn, the natural, the simple, the impermanent, the imperfect. The photos reflect the ancient Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, a combination of two words: wabi which translates as humble, and sabi which indicates the beauty found in the natural passing of time. It is an aesthetic which focuses on a gentle acceptance of transience, and of the quality of beauty in ephemeral things.

In part, perhaps wabi-sabi is to the East what beauty in perfection is to the West.

In applying the concept to your life, the practice of wabi-sabi invites you to slow down, attach value to a simpler life-style,  and de-emphasize the material goods in your life. It offers encouragement to find beauty in the unexpected. It provides for a deeper connection with nature, and a deeper connection with the people around you.

The photograph of these rusted spokes is the first in a series. It was taken deep in the woods in a less-traveled part of Door County in northern Wisconsin last summer..

Humor - A Necessary Winter Commmodity

The Statue of Liberty is back on the ice of Lake Mendota. She has a long and fabled history here in Madison.

Here’s the story.