Comments on: On the Beauty of Imperfection

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 21 Jul 2005 05:53:44 +0000

What a beautiful post - thank you.

By: david

david — Thu, 21 Jul 2005 15:26:52 +0000

Lovely. I couldn’t agree more. My wife is fond of pointing out that it is the imperfections that can also make people attractive. We are often attracted to or facinated by individuals who are striking or noticable, and many movie stars that have that appeal don’t measure up well against the “beautiful” scale of symmetry and proportion. They are beautiful people because of the slight crook of their nose, the scar on their chin, the mental ‘hum’ that the mind creates when comparing two unmatched sides of a similar-but-not-symmetrical face. And a visage or body with imperfections often has appeal because of it’s apparent genuineness (as opposed to the perfect body with the perfect face). True symmetry in the human form to the mind can easily equate with synthetic, and often that’s the case.

When it comes to life, work, etc, the acceptance of the imperfect and incomplete is what gives me drive - not the drive to perfect, or the drive to complete, but the drive to keep going because I know there is always something to do, and the drive to enjoy each moment because I know that’s the real joy…the doing and going, not the done and gone.

As an aside, as I read this, I couldn’t help thinking about how I’ve always thought Tyler Durden (in Chuck Palahniuk’s _Fight_Club_) was a freaking Zen master. As he’s quoted in collected form in the Dust Brothers song from the film of the same name:

I say let me never be complete
I say may I never be content
I say deliver me from Swedish furniture
I say deliver me from clever arts
I say deliver me from clear skin and perfect teeth
I say you have to give up
I say evolve, and let the chips fall where they may

Beautiful. Freaking beautiful.

Keep up the good work, dude.

David (long time reader, first time poster)

P.S. I love my DIY Planner HPDA. Thanks for the templates too, I’ve made my own artist pages!

By: Alexandre

Alexandre — Fri, 22 Jul 2005 19:29:36 +0000

Great post. Thanks.

It’s also true in drawing, painting and computer graphics. Imperfections are what make drawings realistic.

Speaking of which… You might already have seen those pictures if you read Boing Boing, but this is a good example of how imperfect things may look beautiful: Abandoned Theme Park Pictures

By: Bill

Bill — Fri, 22 Jul 2005 22:41:43 +0000

That’s some fine, thoughty writing. We think very much the same on this subject, especially when you take it beyond human physical beauty. I want to respond more fully, but I’d rather compose it offline, get my thoughts in order, etc.

Alexandre: Thank you for the link to the wonderful Japanese photos. You might enjoy www.foundmagazine.com.

By: seward street » Perfectionism is a Disease

seward street » Perfectionism is a Disease — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:00:01 +0000

[…] I was real happy to read this wonderful post from Douglas Johnston about the "Beauty of Imperfection." One paragraph that sounds awfully familiar when it comes to animation: The Western World […]