The Tai-an teahouse, attributed to Sen no Rikyu (1582), embodies the Japanese value of transience over permanence. T-an, the art of Utsushi reinterprets a replica of the Tai-an commissioned for seismic experiments through Utsushi, a Japanese reproduction method that honours enduring aesthetics, material mastery, and spiritual depth while meeting contemporary needs. Its peaceful tea ceremonies reflect on environmental precarity and stand as a testament to resilience and cultural continuity.
Participants
TOMOHISA MIYAUCHI, NAOKO TAMURA, KUNIMITSU HATA, ATSUKO MOCHIDA, AND SIMONE SHU-YENG CHUNG
KYOTO, HYOGO, AND NAGANO, JAPAN; GRENOBLE, FRANCE; STUTTGART, GERMANY; SINGAPORE, REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE
Tomohisa Miyauchi, Tokyo, Japan, 1976. Lives and works in Kyoto, Japan.
Naoko Tamura, Tokushima, Japan, 1969. Lives and works in Kyoto, Japan.
Kunimitsu Hata, Gifu, Japan, 1972. Lives and works in Kyoto, Japan.
Atsuko Mochida, Tokyo, Japan, 1989. Lives and works in Nagano, Japan, and Stuttgart, Germany
Simone Shu-Yeng Chung, Kuching, Malaysia, 1976. Lives and works in Grenoble, France, and Singapore, Republic of Singapore.
Technical Collaborators
Claudia Ortigas, Mateo Ivan Eiletz, Shinya Aoyama, Shigeki Fujii
Thanks
Thomas Daniell; Hidekazu Nishizawa; Naotake Maeda
Supporters
Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University; Faculty of Architecture, Kyoto Arts and Crafts University (KYOBI); Nomura Foundation
