Glass Tea House - KOU-AN
ArtistTokujin Yoshioka
Year2011-
MediumGlass and stainless steel

Glass Tea House - KOU-AN is a chashitsu (teahouse) created by Japanese designer and artist Tokujin Yoshioka.

The teahouse made its debut at the 54th La Biennale di Venezia in 2011. Starting with the exhibition at Tendai Sect Shōren-in, Kyoto in 2015, the teahouse is traveling inside Japan, and it is currently exhibited at the National Art Center, Tokyo.

Description

Glass Tea House - KOU-AN revisits the very roots of Japanese culture through, and transcending time and space. This glass made teahouse does not feature traditional scrolls or Ikebana, Japanese flower arrangement, the usual embellishments associated with a teahouse. Instead, by using glass, the resulting architecture delights and confounds the eye, creating a glistening water surface under the shower of natural light, with light refracted by a crystal prism sculpture turning into a rainbow of ‘flowers made of light’. In the absence of physical components, this ‘architecture of light’ reaches poetic and thought-provoking dimensions.[1]

The glass floor recalls the glistening water surface under the shower of natural light.
Light refracted by a crystal prism sculpture turns into a rainbow of ‘flowers made of light.’

Unlike the traditional Japanese teahouse which is often described as a closed microcosm, Glass Tea House - KOU-AN is composed of glass, and therefore shows different expressions with the influence of surrounding environment.

Exhibitions

'Glass Tea House - KOU-AN' 2011, 54th La Biennale di Venezia Glasstress 2011 (Venice, Italy)[2]

The design of Glass Tea House - KOU-AN was presented at the Glasstress 2011, the collateral event of the 54th La Biennale di Venezia which is held in Venice every two years.

'Glass Tea House - KOU-AN' 2015 – 2017, the Shogunzuka Seiryu-den stage, Tendai Sect Shoren-in (Kyoto, Japan)[3]

Glass Tea House - KOU-AN, 2015 - 2017, Tendai Sect Shoren-in

Shogunzuka is located on the peak of Mt. Higashiyama. Panoramic view of Kyoto could be observed from its deck where Glass Tea House - KOU-AN was exhibited. In 794 when Emperor Kanmu was looking for a location to establish a new capital, he climbed to the area now known as Shogunzuka and decided to move the capital to Kyoto, and constructed Heian Kyo, a city where Japanese culture and art bloomed.[4] Painting of the Blue Cetaka, a national treasure of Japan, is also dedicated to Shoren-in.[5]

'TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA Glass Tea House - KOU-AN' 2018 – 2019, The Saga Prefectural Art Museum (Saga, Japan)[6]

TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA Glass Tea House - KOU-AN, 2018 - 2019, Saga Prefectural Art Museum

The installation of teahouse was showcased inside a white exhibition space along with some of Yoshioka’s renowned artworks such as Water Block, glass bench permanently displayed at Musée d' Orsay, and Waterfall, glass table. Saga is Yoshioka’s home town, and in 2015 his exhibition TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA_TORNADO was held in celebration of the museum's renewal.[7]

'TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA Glass Tea House - KOU-AN' 2019 – 2022, The National Art Center, Tokyo (Tokyo, Japan)[8]

TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA Glass Tea House - KOU-AN, 2019 - 2022, The National Art Center, Tokyo

The National Art Center, Tokyo which opened in 2007, is known for the beautiful wavelike glass wall façade designed by Kisho Kurokawa. Glass Tea House - KOU-AN is exhibited at the main entrance of the art center along with Water Block, glass bench permanently displayed at Musée d' Orsay.[9]

Publication

TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA KOU-AN Glass Tea House, Kyuryudo, 2017

References

  1. ↑ "Glass Tea House − KOU-AN | WORKS | TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA". www.tokujin.com. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  2. ↑ "tokujin yoshioka: water block + kou an glass teahouse". designboom | architecture & design magazine. 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  3. ↑ "Tokujin Yoshioka installs tea house beside Japanese temple". Dezeen. 2015-04-24. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  4. ↑ "Shogunzuka | Shorenin Temple". www.shorenin.com. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  5. ↑ "National Treasure Blue Cetaka | Shorenin Temple". www.shorenin.com. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  6. ↑ "Kou-an glass tea house by Tokujin Yoshioka returns, touring to Saga and then Tokyo in 2019". Japan Trends. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  7. ↑ "tokujin yoshioka sends a tornado through saga prefectural art museum". designboom | architecture & design magazine. 2015-07-07. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  8. ↑ "TOKUJIN YOSHIOKA Glass Tea House KOU-AN｜THE NATIONAL ART CENTER, TOKYO". www.nact.jp. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  9. ↑ "tokujin yoshioka: water block at musee d'orsay". designboom | architecture & design magazine. 2011-10-28. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
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