The Art of Tea

Participate in a tea ceremony and make your own tea bowl to be fired then delivered to DIY for pick up at a later time. Limited to 7 participants! Community members may join as an audience member at no cost. This event is made possible with the support of Japanese Tea Kimikura.

THE WORKSHOP

• Part I Yuzenraku – Tea Gathering (12 PM – 2 PM)
• Break (30 min.)
• Part II Takumi – Making your bowl (2:30 – 5:30)

Part I
Yuu Zen Raku 悠然楽 (effortless) is a freeform contemporary tea gathering inspired by the enduring Japanese tea ceremony Cha No Yu 茶の湯. It is an invitation to reflect on what matters, that cannot be expressed in words for the menu is not the meal. In the act of making and sharing a bowl of tea lies a mindful awareness and tranquility that engages all our senses. Ceramics, calligraphy, flower arrangement and delicate nourishment of exquisite tender first flush shade grown leaves matcha tea paired with simple sweets are the elements of an offering that in and of itself is spiritual, expressing the essence of its source wabi sabi 詫寂.

This tea gathering will introduce you to making matcha and its historical and cultural background, telling lore and facts revealing the beauty and spirituality of the aesthetics of the inevitable. The flow: opening meditation, observing making matcha – matcha and tea sweets tasting – show & tell – closing meditation.

Part II
Arguably, there would be no art of tea had there been no tea bowl. Timeless and universal, the chawan is a multi-purpose vessel. Deriving from a rice bowl, a well water-fetching bowl, a beggar’s bowl… The zeitgeist of 1590ies Japan elevated this humble crockery to the centerpiece of a gesamtkunstwerk: a composition of art that encompasses visual, functional, culinary and performance interdependently as first amongst equals. 

Takumi 匠 (the art of making) is based on my practical experience of studying ceramics in Japan. Less is more, let the clay do the work; I have applied it in my workshops since the early 1990ies at cultural centers, summer camps, private art studios, galleries and museums in Germany, Japan and in the US. 

Material matters. Our clay body is a unique mix of reverse engineered small batches that resemble a wild clay. Adding red or white slip for decor renders color and complexity to its rich surface structure. Natural wood-ash glaze, dipped, poured or splashed and high-fired at 2300ºF will produce functional stoneware that is durable, food, microwave, and dishwasher safe.

Tools: Our own hands (leave one thumb nail a bit longer, it carves beautiful lines…), a wooden paddle, a pointed carving tool, a sponge… 

Techniques: We will learn the classic Japanese raku technique with a single ball of clay, nothing added, nothing subtracted. Basically, a pinch pot, but adding a paddle technique, combined they are earth-honest, effective and fun to do. The creative process is fostering and developing our sense of aesthetics, form, fit and function.