Getting Started

The Japanese concept of beauty incorporates none of the sym­metry that is to be found in pre-modern Western and traditional Chinese perceptions of beauty. In symmetry, left and right, size, and volume are orchestrated to create perspective and balance. In asymmetry, the balance between left and right is altered to create a dynamic beauty. A fine example is the Horyu Temple compound in Nara in western Japan where two unequal masses, the tall, slender pagoda and the low, wide Golden Hall, stand alongside each other. Here, again, one can see the aesthetic of dynamic tension asserting itself.

It is difficult to explain the Japanese love for asymmetry, yet it cannot be unconnected with their perception of nature. If, as proposed by a Japanese anthropologist. Western 'culture origi­nated in the world of the desert, then perhaps the desert dwell­ers' view of the universe gave birth to monotheism and saw beauty in perfect symmetry that has little relevance to nature as a whole. And, if, in contrast, Japanese culture is seen to have originated in the chaotic world of the forest, then perhaps the pantheism that evolved led to an appreciation of the unbalanced harmony in the tension created by dynamic forces locked in unresolved conflict.

Asymmetry in Japanese architectu

Getting Started

Welcome to Training for Android developers. Here you'll find sets of lessons within classes that describe how to accomplish a specific task with code samples you can re-use in your app. Classes are organized into several groups you can see at the top-level of the left navigation.

This first group, Getting Started, teaches you the bare essentials for Android app development. If you're a new Android app developer, you should complete each of these classes in order:

Date: 2014-12-29; view: 1039