Sino-Japanese Traditional Furniture Comparative Study Of Decorative Patterns

Pattern decoration is the most common form of furniture decoration that beautify physical surface of the furniture. These furniture designs not only play an important role in decoration and beautification, but also have rich cultural connotation. It could reflect a nation's unique temperament and embody national ideas, moral and aesthetic taste. It is an important indicator of history of civilization. It also demonstrates the different characteristics of period-style furniture.China and Japan are separated only by a narrow strip of water and facing each other across the sea. Special geopolitical relations and similar cultural traditions and customs for the two countries make traditional furniture design have a great deal of the same or similar nature in terms of content, theme, metaphorical connotations and expressions and so on. However, a different way of life and special national temperament for the two countries form the difference and comparability of decorative patterns of the traditional furniture.Based on the Sino-Japanese cultural, this paper compares the evolution and development of traditional Chinese and Japanese furniture designs with parallel comparative study and impact comparative study. Results show that Chinese and Japanese traditional furniture design is "different flow homology" and Japanese traditional furniture design is based on the Tang style with China as the source, and continuously developed from the integration of other arts. The decorative patterns are similar in many respects, but the historical development of the two countries, differences in the geographical environment, lifestyle changes, as well as different national character determine the pattern of Sino-Japanese traditional furniture decoration with the essential difference. Through the comparative study of decorative patterns and classification, it indicates Sino-Japanese traditional furniture design theme is homology, and Japanese traditional furniture is major in plant-based patterns, and Chinese traditional furniture design has a diversity of decorative patterns, which has both animal and plant decoration patterns. Auspicious motifs are a major feature of traditional Chinese furniture. A "family pattern" as the decorative patterns, is also a unique phenomenon as decorative arts of traditional Japanese furniture. By comparison of the connotation of decorative themes, it points out that the traditional Chinese furniture is influenced by both Confucianism and Taoism and decorative arts embody "good fortune, ambitious, moderation and flying" characteristics. Due to the impact of Zen thinking, the decorative arts of traditional Japanese furniture have "sorrow objects, microscopic, incomplete and silent" characteristics. Through the comparative study of the decorative way, it suggests the structure decoration is a feature of traditional Chinese furniture and other decorative approach is different between China and Japan, but the Japanese Lacquer Maki beautiful and delicate carved decoration is worth thinking and learning for modern designers.