Harukaze 春風 Spring Breeze
Collaboration Between Japanese Tea
Ceremony and the Installation Art “A Thread X A Thread”
Artist Statement by Chiyoko Myose
On our journey through life, we meet many people. Although I know I cannot build relationships
with every person that I meet, my hope is to treasure the moment of meeting
people whether or not I will have another chance to see that person again. I believe such a mindset will eventually
bring peace between individuals and create a sense of "home." The
installation “A Thread X A Thread” began by tying two pieces of thread together
and it continues to evolve. Each knot that
is created represents the crossing point between people; and the importance of
cherishing each moment of encounters with others.
This idea resonates with a Japanese cultural concept which is
related to the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Over a cup of tea, participants in the tea
ceremony experience a moment of peace and tranquility in a once-in-a-lifetime
encounter.
I am pleased to collaborate with Miyu, who has 12 years of
experience in tea ceremony, to create a collaboration with tea ceremony and the
installation “A Thread X A Thread”. The
theme and the title of this event, “Harukaze, Spring Breeze” expresses the essence
of a journey: movement, change, and resonance with place. Miyu and I traveled
from our home country to another. While
exploring the artistic expression through tea ceremony sessions and immersive
installation art experiences, we hope to express gratitude to the people we meet
along our life’s journey, and to the Wichita community.
Japanese Tea Ceremony
The Japanese tea ceremony, or sado, “The way of
tea”, is a Japanese tradition steeped in history. It is a ceremonial way and
process of serving and drinking tea, showing hospitality and gratitude through
each traditional movement. Tea ceremony is considered as a
comprehensive art form that includes ceramics, hanging scrolls, flower
arrangement, architecture design, and gardens. The four principles of the tea ceremony are tranquility,
respect, purity, and harmony. This traditional philosophy and etiquette
are reflected in various forms in today's Japanese culture. There are three main schools of tea ceremony, and the one
presented in this event is the Urasenke school's. Usu-cha, thin tea, and
sweets called higashi, a handmade confectionery made from fine-grained
sugar are going to be served at this event. Various shapes of higashi
associated with the spring season are prepared.
The journey of “A Thread X A Thread”
Since this work was first showcased in Wichita in 2013, it
has been exhibited in 18 different places including Matfield Green, Manhattan, and
Lindsborg KS, Kansas City, MO, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, OK, Greenwich, CT,
Billings, MT, Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara, and Chiba, Japan. In each show, I invite
people to add threads to my piece hoping that this interactive act would become
the place for them to think about their own relationship with people and
treasure each moment. I hope it will
continue its journey and the added thread pieces will meet people in other
places.
Special thanks to ADCI, Wichita State University the School of Art, Design and Creative Industries, JCA, Japanese Culture Association at Wichita State University, and the Wichita State University Japanese Language Program, Lisa Komatsu, and Ami Goto.
