Wabi-Sabi Box

Polymer clay over a metal box, freshwater pearl

When I started, this piece was going to be something completely different using geometrically patterned clay sheets. But I ended up turning my main sheet into a mess. I decided to run with it and turn it into something much more organic.

Wabi-sabi is the Japanese aesthetic principle of beauty in imperfection. Beyond the appreciation of things that might be called "wonky", the Japanese express this principle by repairing things beautifully. The art of Kintsugi uses lacquer and gold to repair broken ceramics. Since polymer clay comes in metallics, I could mimic this technique in my box.

Although it's nothing like I imagined at the start, I couldn't be happier with the result.