The Wisdom Tea House

Andon 108, 2019

This paper traces the journey of a Hayami-ryū teahouse from Japan to Georgian Court, George Jay Gould estate in Lakewood, N.J. (now Georgian Court University), via the great Japan-British Exhibition at White City in 1910.

2018

CRC Press, 2019

Intelligence, Creativity and Fantasy: Proceedings of the 5th International Multidisciplinary Congress (PHI 2019), October 7-9, 2019, Paris, France CRC Press, 2019 ISBN: 9781000734201 pp89-92 (578pp) Azuchi-Momoyama period (1573-1600) was a time in Japanese history characterised by the appearance of great heroes and issuing of great battles. It was also when the first Europeans (Portuguese) arrived in Japan and a period that Japanese art and architecture flourished. Japanese warlords, such as Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1585-1592), were responsible for promoting atrocious violent acts and exquisite, delicate, exuberant and sophisticated art. The Tea Ceremony is an example of a habit that evolved into a form of art thanks to the patronage of warlords. It started with the collection of utensils and developed into the design of a space that elevated the act of drinking tea into a different dimension. Through this tea architecture, they aimed at experiencing a different world, detached from their reality, a Zen world, a world of serenity and art where each encounter was important. This study attempts to explain, through an analysis of João Rodrigues Tçuzu's description of the tea house, how the tea master translated into architecture the fantasy of a peaceful and fresh Zen world, how he designed the tea gardens and tea houses in a manner that the guest could experience this Zen fantasy.

The Journal of Asian Arts & Aesthetics, 2020

The Momoyama period was one of the most international and innovative times in Japanese art and culture and the use of imported Korean tea bowls (kōrai chawan) in the tea ceremony chanoyu, the most valued social as well as ritual appreciation of art during that time, was well established. Against this background of internationalism and crave for things overseas, Korean tea bowls triggered a change in the appreciation of tea utensils in the tea ceremony on the one hand, and on the other they were agents of transcultural manifestations themselves and highly valued by those in military, political, or economic power. This article deals with Goshomaru tea bowls that were ordered in Japan and made in Korea during the turn of the centuries-during a time, when official connections between the two countries had been cut off. The scarce sources on these bowls leave them a mystery that will be approached by looking at the development of the chanoyu during the 16th and 17th century and its historical narrative that emphasizes the genealogy of tea masters and the categorizing of utensils. Their design is closely connected to one of the leading figures in the chanoyu of the time, Furuta Oribe (1544-1615), whose name today is used for a whole category of pottery, Oribe yaki, that was later mass-produced in Mino kilns, Aichi Prefecture. The possible connection between the Goshomaru bowls and this innovative tea practitioner show that the aesthetics of these bowls are a product of the Momoyama zeitgeist.

Aceh International Journal of Science and Technology

The existence of traditional houses in Banda Aceh has been extinguished in modern times. With globalization's impact, the traditional house connotates as ‘old house style,’ and thus, the house style is not up to date. A large number of house owners demolish them and reconstruct them with new modern houses. Despite that, it is approved that the traditional houses of Aceh were survived the earthquake that frequently hit the region. As Banda Aceh is one of the regions resided on Sumatran's segment, the region has a large number of earthquakes. This paper, which is part of the previous study on the thermal comfort of traditional and modern houses in Aceh, explores a historical architectural example that reveals local experiences that involve local wisdom and expertise. This paper focuses on a traditional house located in a modern housing neighborhood in Banda Aceh city. In doing this, the paper identifies how Acehnese ancestors, through their local knowledge, have constructed a...

Buildings, 2024

Tea rooms hold a significant place in Chinese culture, serving as spaces for social interaction and spiritual reflection. Tea consumption in Hebei Province has continued to rise, leading to an increase in the number of tea rooms. This study explores how Zen aesthetics are incorporated into the design of tea rooms in Hebei, with a focus on how minimalist principles reflect cultural and spiritual values. Renowned for its rich heritage, Hebei has become a key region where Zen elements such as the use of natural materials and harmonious spatial layouts are seamlessly integrated into tea room interiors. This study employs qualitative methods, including a literature review, field observations, and visual documentation, to assess the aesthetic and functional characteristics of Zen-style tea rooms. The findings reveal that Zen aesthetics greatly enhance the user experience by fostering tranquility and harmony, catering to the increasing demand for spiritual calm and a connection with nature in modern life. Additionally, the findings highlight that tea rooms serve as sanctuaries for emotional and cultural relief, symbolising personal peace and elevated social status. By emphasising simplicity and natural harmony, Zen-style tea rooms offer transformative spatial experiences, encouraging cultural expression and psychological well-being on modern interior design.

福岡大学人文論叢第 50 巻第 2 号, 2018

Tea histories tend to focus on the larger urban centres of Honshu. The 2010 publication by Matsuoka Hirokazu shifts the focus away from the Kyoto headquarters of the grand master system by examining the impact on the northern Kyushu region of the tea culture of Sen no Rikyū. The book is guided by the tea community assumption that the Nambō Roku, the series of manuscripts that was supposedly ‘discovered’ by Tachibana Jitsuzan (five scrolls in 1686, and two more scrolls in 1690), is the closest representation to the tea values espoused by Rikyū. This paper is a translation of the first chapter of the Matsuoka book, and that chapter deals with the history of the tea kettles of Ashiya. The first chapter introduces the geographical location of Ashiya and gives an overview of the major developments since 1991 that were directed at re-establishing Ashiya as a production centre of tea kettles after a lapse of more than three hundred years. The formal characteristics of Ashiya- gama tea kettles are described in terms of their shape and their surface designs. The distinctive casting method that allowed competent Ashiya artisans to produce kettles no more than 2 mm thick was a significant advantage over other techniques practiced elsewhere that resulted in kettle walls being 3 mm thick. The historical period of kettle production commences by noting the existence of a 1443 document containing the expression Ashiya-gama. The historical survey concludes with a mention of a temple bell, cast in 1600, as being the final cast object produced in the Ashiya foundry. The bureaucratic intervention of tax-payer funds to revitalize the local economy of Ashiya, in part by invoking a historical narrative that refers to the status of eight Ashiya-gama as Important Cultural Properties (jūyōbunka-zai) (that Agency for Cultural Affairs category is itself a bureaucratic construction), is an important example of how traditions tend to be modern inventions. Keywords Ashiya, hatsu-gama, kama-biraki, jūyō bunka-zai, tabi-yuki merchants of Ashiya, Ashiya-kabuki (Ashiya-based kabuki theater), Ashiya-machi Museum of History and Folklore, Ashiya-gama no Sato (the home village of Ashiya-gama), Kanaya-goshin god, the shin-nari-gama kettle shape, the hiki-ita board, the hiki-naka-go technique, temple bells (bon-shō), prayer gongs (wani-guchi), Shin-Ashiya-gama, Hakata-gama, Hakata-cha-gama