Have look at Sonomi Urakawa’s amazing tea photography. Her work really says more about tea art than all the articles we’ve ever published. Gorgeous!
Have look at Sonomi Urakawa’s amazing tea photography. Her work really says more about tea art than all the articles we’ve ever published. Gorgeous!
August 23rd, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Sonomi Urakawa’s images are lovely and serene, and the tea settings she has created are a joy to behold. The chosen teawares, which draw my immediate attention, are humble yet desirous at the same time. I find myself thinking about how cool and smooth these ceramic teacups must be to hold and sip from. And I lustfully wish to be able to examine all of the wares and utensils shown more closely.
But Ms. Urakawa is too modest in her explanation of what she has created. These settings are not just a casual placement of a lovely ‘this ‘with a beautiful ‘that”, but to me are beautiful examples of contemporary arrangements of well-selected and intentionally placed items that encompass time-honored Japanese principles of the arrangement of tea objects.
So, with typical Western out-spokenness, I would like to quickly point out the undercurrents that I suspect are lurking beneath the surface of her work ( or I should say, as I see them lurking ) so that readers of http://www.the-leaf.org can fully able appreciate how skillfully this artist works.
1. In Chanoyu, the Japanese tea ceremony, the tea master is responsible for choosing the teawares, utensils, scroll, flowers, etc, that will be used in the ceremony. Additionally, the month and season of the year, the time of day, the status of the guests who will be arriving and many other small but important details must be taken into account to properly set the tone of room for the tea gathering. Teawares and tea utensil choices are crucial as well. Overall, the art of selecting and composing the items for the tea ceremony is called toriawase, or the arrangement of tea objects.
Author Jennifer Lea Anderson discussed the principles behind toriawase in her book: An Introduction to Japanese Tea Ritual. (For the sake of brevity, I have taken the liberty to combine a few of her statements). “ The host or hostess uses the toriawase to share something that cannot be fully expressed in words. Creating toriawase is an art form like poetry. Principles of toriawase relate to conventional Japanese aesthetic preferences. Asymmetry is preferred to symmetry. Empty space is used in a positive sense and clutter is avoided. Color is used sparingly and textiles are chosen to subtly contrast with each other. The scale of utensils must be considered.”
2. In our book, The Story of Tea (Ten Speed Press, 20070, I wrote on page 381-319: “During Japan’s Edo Period ( 1600-1867) a simpler-style of tea drinking came into popularity. Many Japanese intellectuals were looking to break away from the formal nature of the Chanoyu powdered tea ceremony. They wanted to drink tea in an unaffected, less restrictive and conventional way. During this time, it became fashionable among Japanese philosophers and artists to emulate the refined method of classical tea drinking developed by Chinese scholars and the elite literati of the Ming dynasty ( 1368-1644). They were drawn to the simplicity of the Chinese method of steeping loose-leaf tea, and sought to emulate Ming scholar-recluses who led spiritually enlightened lives. By aligning themselves with the Ming literati through tea drinking, these Japanese intellectuals created a new way to drink tea in Japan, which first became known as the sencha tea ceremony, and later as the sencha tea service, or simple as drinking sencha. “
Drinking sencha necessitated the use of tea pots rather than the traditional chawans (matcha bowls ) of Chanoyu. Over time, other tea utensils which graced Chinese tea tables were incorporated into the Japanese practice as it developed. The sensibilities of both tea cultures met on the tea table, so to speak, and this integrated tea arrangement continues with some Japanese tea practitioners today.
Looking once again at the photographs, I am particularly taken with the photograph that features the red tray in the center of the arrangement . The Chinese elements – the Ru-ware teapot and cups in moon-white glaze, the black or black-brown Chinese tenmoku tea bowl, and the Chinese metal tea tin – are a nod to classic and historic Chinese ‘tea’ wares and utensils. Japanese modernity is introduced with the choice of the narrow, rectangular sweets dish, the lantern and the red lacquer tray which juxtaposes very charmingly with the classical Japanese Chanoyu elements of the usuchaki ( red and black laquer tea container) and the cast iron tetsubin water kettle.
To read more about the history of drinking sencha in Japan, I recommend reading the following books:
Tea of the Sages: The Art of Sencha by Patricia J. Graham, University of Hawai’I Press, 1998
Baisaō, The Old Tea Seller, by Norman Waddell, Counterpoint Publishers, 2008
August 24th, 2009 at 1:30 am
Excellent! This was so much more than a comment, but rather an informative article in and of itself–expanding the issue and what it has to offer. I agree, and can verify through meeting her in person that she is indeed humble and modest, which are elements of her tea arrangements as well.
My favorites are the ones that were chosen for the AoT covers, which she was so happy to reproduce here since the covers also had words and advertisements on top of her work. I especially like the one with the blossoms, as it reminds me of sencha gatherings I attended when I lived in Japan. Being much younger then, the flowers wafted sentiment and perfume.
Greatest comment award!
September 21st, 2009 at 1:58 am
The red tray was designed by Naoko Shintani for Luca Villa (Milano) :
http://www.tableartonline.com/product.php?productid=22031%26cat=707%26page=1
September 21st, 2009 at 5:56 am
Interesting and beautiful as well.
September 21st, 2009 at 9:28 pm
Dear Fortunato,
Thank you for pointing out a retail source for the lovely red tray. I am sure there are readers who will be interested in purchashing it. I love that it is a collaboration between a Japanese designer and an Italian manufacturer. Form and function, art and design has made a good match !!
September 22nd, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Dear Mary Lou Heiss, I agree totally with you… I have myself a Naoko Shintani/Villa tray and I also would like to add I love when contemporary design items are mixed with tradition as chinese and/or japanese teaware… Sonomi Urakawa showed us that perfect match !