[Thomas Pineda]

That brings up such an interesting topic for debate- when should we consider certain monuments or edifices obsolete, in a sense, that it would no longer be sustainable to maintain them? There is a delicate balance of preserving culture and history but also factoring the environmental or societal cost this maintenance. After the lecture, I ended up watching the "Life on Our Planet" documentary by David Attenborough and thought of what this model of sustainability would look like and how can science be leveraged to preserve some of these majestic or artistic sites while allowing nature to repopulate our constant development. 

[Thomas Pineda]

I found that analysis of the architecture and range of use from night to day in Japans machiya very insightful. I recall walking around Kyoto during the Gion Matsuri and being very intrigued by places that seemed to pop up out of nowhere, or disappear entirely at other times. What was also cool was seeing those pavilions, as mentioned in the video, open up and for activity to be happening from ground level all the way up to height of the tall floats above. The cross-section view of various urban dwellings was a great perspective of viewing the flux of activity throughout the day in different sections. It really highlighted the design holistically, versus the regular on-the-ground level view you would see walking about various streets in these places.

[Thomas Pineda]

• In terms of sharing this with my students, I think relating the geometry of design in their own work spaces would be a way for them to practice their visual-spatial cognition. They could create distilled drawings of the shapes or design of their rooms and work places- like the examples shown of Japanese interiors in comparison with the the Mondrian painting. From their designs on graph paper, we could name shapes and perhaps label the type of aesthetic they prefer or have in their homes. Of course, for privacy, I would have them focus solely on the shapes and not include any things that would be too personal. But as our workspaces are increasingly at home and of usually one static place, it would ld be a fun way to take a new perspective on perhaps a mundane view.

[Thomas Pineda]

Chiaro scuro in Japanese aesthetic. I appreciated the distillation of Japanese interior aesthetic into four different styles (austere, regal, gilded, rustic) and also some quintessential themes that I may have noticed, but never was able to name. As referenced in the video, I can clearly see the geometric stylings of Japanese interiors, lacking curves or diagonals. I can also recall that calmness exerted from diffuse lighting inside, whether from rice paper windows or opaque openings. While that minimalist styling that I picture in my head is often dissected by horizontal and vertical lines, I often picture it brightly lit in design magazines or books to showcase that austerity. However, when I think of other publications, there is also an emphasis on the wabi-sabi, rusticness and worn and warm-toned wood that is dimly lit. There is a range of styles, like the title suggests, going from Zen to neon.

[Thomas Pineda]

Following up with some infographics that are presented in the World Economic Forum’s website, Japan is near the bottom of one index, of percentage of females occupying board of director seats in companies. Japan is at roughly 6%, China is at 9% and South Korea is at 2%. In terms of their overall rankings of the top 10 East Asian & Pacific countries, in order from the best, New Zealand, Philippines, Laos, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Mongolia, Indonesia, Viet Nam and then Cambodia. I wonder if it has to do with governmental and cultural roots in Confucian principles and subordination of women? With the exception of Mongolia, most of these are South East Asian countries, so I wonder if there is also a geographical reason as well.

[Thomas Pineda]

After viewing the first video and thinking that society in Japan would closely reflect the the values written into their constitution, the second video and required readings shed more light on cultural values after the 1950s. (Spoiler alert) Like the constitution and former Prime Minister Abe's "Womenomics" movement, these ended up as ideas on paper but did not actually materialize so well into the workforce, makeup of political office holders and so on. A lot of the numbers presented in the articles, such as percentages of female office holders or in mangerial positions, would be useful data to look at in my middle school Math classes during Ratio & Proportion lessons. Finding a way to compare these percentages or ratios (male to female or female to total population) would shed light on the cultural landscape of politics or the workforce in Japan, and then could be easily researched and compared to other nations (using rankings or data from the World Economic Forum's Gender Gap index).

[Thomas Pineda]

I also thought that would be an interesting fact to focus a lesson on- that the Japanese Constitution written in 1947, with the contributions by Americans, included equal rights for men and women (as opposed to the US Constitution). Students could directly compare and contrast both original documents and weigh the pros and cons of each. While the explicit statement about gender equality is definitely an improvement over the US document, it would be interesting to see the full Japanese Constitution and compare other parts. While the Japanese Constitution is almost a full 200 years younger than the US, which might account for the emphasis on equality, I'm interested to find out if society around the mid-1900s also reflected that same emphasis on equal rights. 

[Thomas Pineda]

Having been fortunate enough to visit a few of these temples and pagodas in my short time in Japan and China, I never thought of the introduction of verticality into the urban landscape. I did marvel at the engineering involved in these older structures, but there is also the sacred aspect of these sites, containing remnants of Buddha or his articles. This seems similar to medieval churches that housed vestiges or belongings of prolific saints. Also, another place that I had visited and admired were Zen gardens in Japan. Their stark design and meticulously crafted aesthetic seem like a perfect setting for meditation, especially ensconced in nature- like the example that was mentioned with Mount Hiei in the background. The anecdote was also entertaining, that a walking zen garden should be manicured in a way, by nature, so that what would naturally occur be reflected upon while enjoying the garden, versus the human impact of cleaning up or removing parts of nature from it.  Another personal connection I could relate to was the tea ceremony and especially the graphic that described each act as cleansing each of one’s senses (sight, ears, touch, etc;). While I don’t regularly have tea or partake in ceremonies, I can relate a daily ritual of making a pour over coffee similar in a sense of the different senses that become awakened in the process of boiling, grinding, pouring and ultimately tasting

[Thomas Pineda]

 As you and Dennis both mentioned, it was a very intriguing take on 'sustainability' mentioned in the discussion. I hadn't thought or framed sustainability in that sense before, if it doesn’t serve human lives then the point of it is moot. The idea of this is that the goal of sustainability is amalgamous and that it doesn’t always have to serve the the wealthy or elite that is marketed now in our country. This is a struggle philosophically for myself. As our Next Generation Science Standards state, we need to examine how humans impact our environment. But if we were looking for ways to have little to no impact at all, then we might as well not exist- then at that point, it is not sustainable for us. Taking into account the human factor and seeing ways our development can remain sustainable from different global perspectives is a challenge. I am excited to learn more about how sustainability is approached in East Asian design.

[Thomas Pineda]

I found this really intersting as well- I guess it is topical in the current times of our country and history. But I found this interesting document http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/ps/korea/slavery_koryo.pdf  that talks specifically about this class of slaves who were below commoners.

[Thomas Pineda]

From the readings, it is an interesting concept I never noticed about the North-South-East-West layout of the cities. I’ve noticed while visiting and living around East Asia, all of the emphasis on Chinese characters and names based on north, south .etc; The names of cities in China for the capitals like Beijing & Nanjing- northern and southern capital. Also, in Seoul, each gate was named by the particular side of the city it protected. It was another theme that was mentioned about design of art- that nature was emphasized, as opposed to individuals. Rather than naming a gate or important part of the city after a person or event, they are named after location as well (ex. Bukhansan in Seoul- mountains north of the Han river). Culturally, it is such a departure from how places are identified in our lands. Grand Canyon vs. West-flowing River. Rocky Mountains or Sierra Nevadas vs. Western Mountains. 

[Thomas Pineda]

In this woodblock by Hiroshi Yoshida, it seems like a daily shopping scene is depicted in front of a gate. It’s called “Hoten Ichiba” or “Market in Mukden” and it looks like a a relative snapshot of Chinese market made by a Japanese artist. Compared to other woodblocks I’ve seen of daily life in Japan, this picture seems more composed like a souvenir picture of a foreign place, which it may well have been for the artist. I wonder if there are many other ukiyo-e style prints made of places outside of Japan.

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[Thomas Pineda]

One thing I'd like to learn or research more about is who were slaves in Korea? I read from another resource that they were Low born people- reading from “Inheritance of Slave Status” which contains an excerpt from the Koryo. The document stated that they were unable to leave this status and kept from becoming merely commoners, lest they later come to hold a position in government and try to rebel or uprise against the norm. I am curious where this class of people originated and what, if any, ramifications of it continue to exist today.

[Thomas Pineda]

In 1884, Western missionaries were US/Canadian and emphasized integration of hospitals and education, as opposed to religion, to show merits of western culture and religion. That was an interesting angle for westerners to take, a slight departure from the imperialism or colonialism we’re used to reading about. As a thought exercise with my students, I would like to present them with that choice, as if some foreign or alien technology were to come to the planet, would they rather choose advanced medicine or education/knowledge. That would be an interesting debate and discussing the merits of each and how that would affect our current society.

[Thomas Pineda]

The story “Cranes” was a beautiful snippet of a reality where rural boys had grown up through the Korean war and were torn by the 38th parallel. Due to the divisive nature of the war, one protagonist was a citizen of the south while the other had grown up on a farm considered part of the north, and therefore became labeled as a communist. While both had grown up with the same experiences, interests, shenanigans while in the same area, an outside event occurred that divided them politically beyond their control. Depending on the outcome of the war, their roles could have been interchangeable, which is an interesting microcosm to examine.  
I think it would be interesting to share this story with students and see if they can relate this to other stories both fictional or non-fictional. The story brings up themes such as loyalty, empathy, nationalism vs. friendship, etc; and I wonder how my students might discuss this story with the lens our current political climate and how borders create these types of blurred lines in society.

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