Reflecting on my experience in the Design for Sustainability subject

Tokyo Godfathers

Studio Ghibli made a huge impression on me over the years as have other sources of creative forms. My love for Japanese culture and subcultures run deep. From animation to fashion, gardening and philosophies, I have an appreciation of old world lore and rituals. The imperfection of wabi-sabi and the infinite connected energy of kintsugi (gluing broken artefacts together and painting gold over the join lines) is all that I needed to know for me to wander in the valleys in the land of the rising sun.

I have always felt a sense of rejection and incompleteness when viewing Western media and seeing how lifestyles and products are pedestalized. In reality I was more than complete and needed no validation to affirm my being. Japanese cultures tend to be whole heartedly entrenched in the pursuit of achieving a concentration of power where the authenticity and subliminal coincide and  produce a language few dare to exchange...if you know you know. It's no wonder Western companies are looking to the East for inspiration. When the post punk avant garde fashion designer Jun Takahashi dropped the daybreak Nike collab I had to cop, with my purchase informed by the designer's history with CDG and Vivienne Westwood.

I have my eye on the Sacai runners but those are hard to get especially when retail is sky high.

I might have to get the Korean Kasina Air max 1. I will say that Capitalism often gets the bad end of the stick but when it comes to low-key consumers like myself I do value being able to score a products that seem obscure and I admit the design geek in me is a maximalist. I'm a minimalist maximalist in that I love few things that are done well. Eastern and African cultures instil the values of appreciation in what you have instead of how much you have and always being grateful for what you have. In Islam this is called shukr and the person who possesses it is shakur, and when you live this Allah or God favours you with barakah (blessings) in exchange for you living a life of gratitude. This brings me to my centre and when I feel myself oscillating in the world I go back to this idea and it settles me knowing I am enough. I know it doesn't make sense when I like purchasing mainstream consumer products because I think they look dope. Sometimes dope is all you need on the day whether it is muzak or artefact.