The Way of Tea | Workshops | Upcoming Tea Gatherings | Japanese Tearoom

The Way of Tea

There are many different traditions of tea practice, each with their own lineage of teachers and style. Visitors to the museum's tea program may have the opportunity to learn from teachers and students trained in five of these different traditions—Dai Nippon Chado Gakkai, Mushakojisenke, Omotesenke, Urasenke, and Yabunouchi. Discover more resources for learning about the Way of tea.

This program has been made possible in part by a grant from the United States-Japan Foundation. Tea programs also sponsored by

Tea gatherings at the asian art museum

The Way of Tea Gatherings and Tastings
Japanese tearoom, Japanese Galleries

Watch and learn about the Japanese "Way of Tea" as you are served you own tea sweet and bowl of whisked green tea. Utilizing the museum's traditional tearoom, Bay Area tea people host these tea gatherings, which feature seasonal themes.

Check back for our 2010 program series which begins in March 2010.

To see pictures of past tea programs, please visit the museum's Flickr site.

Watch a video about the making of the museum's tearoom.

Japanese Tearoom

Location:
In the Japan Galleries, 2nd Floor, South Wing.

Background:
The Japan Galleries of the new Asian Art Museum have space devoted to two major art forms: the tearoom and the bamboo basket. This space includes a fully functioning example of a traditional tearoom custom built for the new museum. The tearoom and related items allow the museum to offer educational programs focusing on the time-honored Japanese tea ceremony. An introduction to chanoyu—the Japanese way of tea—is held bi-monthly in the tearoom.

Tearoom Architect:
Architect Osamu Sato designed the Asian Art Museum's tearoom. Mr. Sato, who has worked in the United States with the firm of Pei, Cobb, Freed, designed a similar tearoom for I.M. Pei's Miho Museum in Shigaraki, near Kyoto, Japan, which opened four years ago.

Tearoom Construction:
The tearoom was constructed in Kyoto by the distinguished firm, Nakamura Sotoji, long famous for refined traditional Japanese architecture built by specially trained carpenters and artisans. The components of the tearoom were precut by Nakamura Yoshiaki, a highly skilled carpenter in Japan. The tearoom was deconstructed and shipped to San Francisco where four carpenters from Kyoto reconstructed it in the museum under the supervision of Mr. Sato.

Tearoom Design:
The Asian Art Museum's tearoom was designed as a functioning tearoom, as well as a display case. It is a size called sanjo-daime or three and three-quarters mats, which will accommodate a tea host and three to four guests. It is complete with a tokonoma, or special alcove for the display of hanging scrolls, flowers or objects, an electric-powered well for a hot water kettle, and a functioning mizuya, or kitchen, for the preparation of the tea ceremony. The tearoom incorporates a variety of woods, bamboo, and reeds. Its three interior ceiling levels display three different ceiling treatments. The tearoom has a sliding glass front that secures the space as a display case, but can open fully when in use for live tea demonstrations.

Watch a video about the making of the museum's tearoom.

Japanese Tearoom Podcast (audio only), 2 MB file | Listen | Help