tokonoma (art alcove)

is a thing whereby its pillar determines its level of formality.

The pillar on one side of the tokonoma is usually made of wood, specially prepared for the purpose. It can range from a seemingly raw trunk with bark still attached, to a square piece of heart wood with very straight grain. The choice of toko-bashira[clarification needed] determines the level of formality for the tokonoma.

is a thing whereby etiquette dictates that the important guest sit with his or her back facing it lest the host appear to be tactlessly showing off its contents.

When seating guests in a Japanese-style room, the correct etiquette is to seat the most important guest with his or her back facing the tokonoma. This is because of modesty; the host should not be seen to show off the contents of the tokonoma to the guest, and thus it is necessary not to point the guest towards the tokonoma.

is essentially the western counterpart of the fireplace.

Frank Lloyd Wright was influenced by Japanese architecture. He translated the meaning of the tokonoma into its western counterpart: the fireplace. This gesture became more of a ceremonial core in his architecture.

tokonoma (art alcove), n.All

tokonoma (art alcove)