This particular show of her work is themed around Chado, the Japanese tea ceremony, using the traditional practice as inspiration for the stark metal forms of her abstract steel and aluminum works, and more directly in the pieces that take the form of actual implements of the ceremony.

The tea tools, as re-worked by Ando, become something less and also more than their utilitarian counterparts, made more stark through a shift in their materials. One set has received a coating of graphite, creating a dramatic, fragile black sheen. Another set of pieces is recast in aluminum, replacing the warm organic bamboo with cold metal. In both cases the beauty of the forms of the tea tools is illuminated, while the functionality is absent, which is a curious transformation.

What does it mean for a tool – in this case one designed and crafted for the express purpose of preparing tea using a very specific and measured set of behaviors and protocols – to be reduced to pure symbol and aesthetic object? Does this allow for a more objective perception of the beauty of the object, or does it somehow lose a part of its meaning? It may not be so simple to determine, and it is possible that the symbolic aspects of the tea tools bear the greatest weight for Ando in their place in the traditional art forms of Japan, not in any contemporary application of tea practice.

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In my opinion, such a reputable tea needs to be accompanied by preparation vessels and tools that match up with its elegance, so a few weeks ago I acquired the teapot in the accompanying photographs below for the explicit purpose of using it only for Da Hong Pao. I have a different Yixing Gongfu set that I had been using for all types of WuYi Oolongs, but I decided that Da Hong Pao needed its own teapot, and that it ought to be one that was more regal in appearance.

I looked at several teapots, but this was the one that I really liked the look of much better than any of the others. It was also the one that felt the best in my hand. I was told that Da Hong Pao would need a teapot with a broad surface area, and the shape of this one is ideal.

I seasoned the vessel with a small amount of one of the slightly lower grade Da Hong Pao teas that I had, and a few days later the teapot was performing perfectly on the tea table, brewing really well, and looking quite wonderful, especially when the tea was drying rapidly on its surface as it steeped the tea.

As an aside, I don’t know if it’s the time of day or the change in the atmospheric conditions due to the onset of Spring, or perhaps even the shape of the teapot, but the most recent tea session of Da Hong Pao (a very lovely example from Canton Tea Company) resulted in a very impressive display of steam in and around all of the tea objects. Of course, it would not be out of the question that I simply became fixated on steam for a time and thus paid more than the usual amount of attention to it.

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• How I generally brew shu pu’er

The thing has a number of excellent qualities, including very thick walls and solid construction. It does have a minor chip on the edge of the lip, but it is not prominently visible, especially when the lid is on, and the vessel should not seal since it’s being used for pu’er anyway, so that’s not an issue.

After I bought it and brought it home I scrubbed it out thoroughly and then aired it out in the fortuitous brief period of sun that we had last weekend. It did not have any odors clinging to the inside part of the clay anyway, which was good. I don’t think that it had ever been used for storing anything with a strong, lingering scent.

I broke up one of the Xiaguan shu pu’er cakes into fairly large chunks and now they are occupying this very nice container. The remarkable thing about this excellent storage container is that I found it in a thrift store and paid less than $10 for it!

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• How I generally brew shu pu’er

The arrangement of the show displays all of the teaware pieces exceptionally well, most of them laid out on the beautiful pure slabs of gorgeous wood that have been transformed into tables by the talented artisans at SLAB Art. The inner perimeter of the gallery space is lined with slices of some of the most luxurious woods, adding to the rich atmosphere of the space.

Of the four exhibiting artists – Richard Brandt, Geo Lastomirsky, Tina Pepa, and Christopher Shaw – all but Ms. Pepa were on hand for the tastings. Both Brandt and Shaw produce teawares designed for Gongfu Cha, and are connoisseurs of the leaf as well as its brewing and serving implements.

There was a delightful array of teas donated to the event by Shiuwen Tai of Floating Leaves Tea, and Brett Boynton of Black Dragon Tea Bar. The teas consisted primarily of Taiwanese oolongs, but also included a Da Hong Pao and an intriguing Organic Hong Cha from Taiwan. Also, instigated by a conversation with Chris Shaw about aged sencha the previous evening, I provided a Kuradashi Sencha, which brewed excellently (and beautifully) in one of his stoneware pots.

During the first session of tastings I was able to observe the initiation of Richard Brandt’s Wind Moon teapot as it was introduced first to a lightly oxidized Alishan and then to a darker roasted Dong Ding, put through the paces of a Taiwanese Phoenix Mountain Oolong and finally used for the Taiwanese black tea. The transformation was quite something to watch, as the surface of the teapot darkened, speckled, and acquired spidery dark streaks along its front.

The tastings, held over a leisurely four hours, took place in the lower back part of the gallery space as well as in the upstairs exhibition loft, split between the two hosts, Shaw and Brandt. I can say with confidence that all of the participants had an excellent time, including the artists themselves.

Although the opportunity to taste teas in these lovely wares has passed, you can still stop into SLAB Art and view the teawares available for sale this Saturday and Sunday, April 2nd and 3rd and the following weekend. The entire body of work in the show is impressive and varied, and all of the pieces look like objects one would want to hold and use. Even Geo Lastomirsky’s exquisite pieces, kindly on loan from Paccini Lubel Gallery, have a wonderful look to them which can be imagined heightened by a bath of tea liquor.

Photographs, from top to bottom:
Christopher Shaw, taken by Chris
Richard Brandt, taken by Chris
downstairs tasting with Christopher Shaw’s teaware, taken by Cinnabar
upstairs tasting with Richard Brandt’s teaware, taken by Chris

View more photos from the show on my Flickr page and in the Gongfu Girl Flickr Group.

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On Sunday following the show opening there will be tea tastings offered in the gallery space, with traditional teas provided by Floating Leaves Tea and Black Dragon Tea Bar, prepared and served with the exhibiting artists’ teawares.

Artists displaying their works in the show include Richard Brandt, Chris Shaw and Tina Pepa. In addition to the works on display and for sale, there will be some pieces of teaware from my personal collection to show similarities and contrasts with the new and local work.

(Click image to view entire poster.)

from the press release:

Once known as the home of the latté, Seattle is now steeped in the emerging contemporary tea culture. Drawing equally on traditional influences and current social media—tea blogs are burgeoning—this new trend cuts across all demographics and pulls in anyone who wants to savor a tranquil moment with friends. This inaugural show, Infusions, will highlight the leading edge of the Northwest tea culture, featuring contemporary tea sets from local ceramic artists, tea tables crafted from salvaged wood by Slab Art, and tea tastings with artisanal and traditional tea samples brewed in the artists’ creations.

INFUSIONS:
Design, Fine Craft, & Contemporary Tea Culture
Slab Art, 4919 17th Ave NW, Seattle 98107
March 26 – April 9, 2011

Sat, March 26 – Opening Reception (6-10 pm)
Sun, March 27 – Tea Tastings (10 am-2 pm)
Viewing times after opening by appointment

For additional information, contact Chris Shaw, 206.359.0792. Space is limited, so reservations are recommended for Sunday’s tea tastings. Email infusions@contemporaryclay.org to ensure a spot.

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That thing on the left is an ebony coaster/tray which gets placed underneath a tasting cup/aroma cup set during a Gongfu Cha session. The thing on the right is way too full of fingerprints!

I have, on more than one occasion, seen one of those coasters in my peripheral vision and thought it was my phone. I have not ever tried to answer or make a call with one, though. I have also never placed small cups of tea on my phone.

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I have had an array of tea-related experiences ranging from exquisite to unremarkable, in many different locations and situations, but I found it pretty easy to call to mind what was probably the worst tea making experience I’ve had so far. Ironically, it was during World Tea East in Boston, 2009.

Wanting to keep my traveling stuff as simple as possible, I did not seriously consider packing an electric kettle or any tea ware for use during the few days on the other side of the country, but I did toss some good tea into my luggage. I’m fairly certain that the tea I brought was Competition Grade Tie Guanyin. Obviously it’s a green oolong, but I must admit that the package looks entirely unfamiliar to me now.

As expected, I tasted some wonderful teas on the exhibition floor, but back in my hotel room my options were pretty dismal. As we all know, aside from decent tea leaves, the absolute minimum of elements one needs to produce a decent cup of tea are: good quality water and a clean vessel that heats water to the right temperature. I had neither of these in my hotel room. Naturally, I needed to prove that making tea under these circumstances would be as bad as I anticipated, so after returning from a day of Tea Expo experiences I put some tap water into the hotel-furnished mini coffee maker (without a filter or filter basket), positioned a styrofoam cup below where the hot water would spit out, and flipped the brew switch. After the infernal machine sputtered the last of its hot water into the cup, I tossed about a teaspoon of leaves in and waited about five minutes.

With high grade lightly-oxidized oolongs like the Tie Guanyin I had with me it’s pretty hard to oversteep the leaves into something that will be unpleasant to drink. However, bad water heated and passed through years worth of stale coffee film and lime deposits can ruin anything. And this marvelous tea did indeed taste pretty awful.

Unfortunately, in this case there was really no remedy at hand. I drank the tea anyway so I’d be able to describe how awful it was…in the interest of science, of course. I had to console myself with promises of better cups of tea in the near future, after I returned home after absorbing a goodly amount of excellent tea information and meeting some wonderful tea people.

Here are links to all of the other contributor’s posts for the Blog Carnival.

Black Dragon Tea Bar: J-Mo’s Wedding Rehearsal Dinner

Cha-Cha-Cha Adventures with Tea: Most Difficult Tea-Making

Tea Pages: Tea Troubles

Tea Snobbery: Tea and learning to Always Get My Tea

That Pour Girl: Tea Blog Carnival No. 6

The Sip Tip, February ATB Blog Carnival

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Several of the other videos in the series Words of the World are well done and informative also, although the British woman speaking about Russian icons has some strange pronunciation habits.

The painting above is “The Merchant’s Wife,” by Boris Kustodiev, 1918.

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It’s probably not time yet to start running about in a panic wondering what to buy all of the people that you have to buy stuff for this holiday season, but you should plan ahead if you want to take advantage of the Christmas Range on special now at Canton Tea Co., particularly if you are in the United States. And really, you might as well make it easy on yourself and just buy everyone you know good tea. It will benefit you to supply family members or friends with good tea for their cabinets for when you visit, or you might just be able to show someone what a wondrously great thing excellent tea is in the first place. Plus I presume there must be those among you who have people to give gifts to who are already well-informed, devoted tea lovers. They will most certainly appreciate gifts from this selection.

Here are a details on a few of the special packages. You can receive 10% off of your order by using the promotional code GFG, and any orders placed before the 30th of November will include a free hand made bamboo strainer.

A few selections from the Canton Christmas 2010 Range:

Two Tea Pack $15.89
Contents:
Box Green Tea (Pouchong 50g)
Box Oolong Tea (Tie Guan Yin 50g)
Save £2 by choosing a pack containing two of our most popular teas, presented in two Canton gift cartons packed in a white card box – and ready to pop under the tree.

Gold Award Tea Pack $23.84
Contents:
Eight Great Taste Award-winning teas (in 10g taster packs)
Eight outstanding teas in one pack giving you the opportunity to taste the very best teas right across the spectrum – from jasmine and white to black and puerh. Packed in two Canton gift cartons.

New to Tea $31.78
Contents:
Straight Glass Teapot
Five 10g taster packs
The easy way to kick off a love of fine, whole leaf tea. Five of our most popular teas including a jasmine, white, green, oolong and black tea with an easy-to-use 400ml glass teapot and a Canton Tea leaflet on how to brew the best tea.

Monthly Tea Box from $95.35 for 6 months
Contents:
A 260g box of 16 handmade tea infused chocolates
Five 10g tea taster packs in a Canton gift carton
Like a veg box, sign up for you or a friend to have seasonal teas delivered every month straight to the door. Free P&P. If you don’t love it after your first delivery we will refund your money. We will send out a gift certificate if you’re buying it as a present.

Visit Canton Tea Company to place your order and view the rest of the specials.

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Unlike most of the sets I have it is very modernist/contemporary in design rather than a more traditional style of teaware. Functionally it is the same as other sets, and I found it very nice to use. The water cooling vessel feels really nice in the hand and both it and the teapot pour very smoothly. This past weekend I used this set for the first time, to brew some third flush Jakseol by Sulloc-Cha, and it was really pleasant, especially sitting in front of the fireplace.

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