2015 NCECA - What Makes a Tea Bowl by John Baymore

1. John Baymore
Adjunct Professor of Ceramics
New Hampshire Institute of Art
What makes a teabowl a Chawan?

2. Chado - Chanoyu
茶道 -- 茶の湯
Making Chawan for actual Japanese Tea Ceremony
usage is the core focus of this presentation.
In producing teabowls for uses other than this
specialized practice, such as those for
steeped teas, for home drinking of matcha,
those intended as sculptural explorations,
and the like……..
much of what I’ll talk about is of limited application.

3. Semantics
Words matter. Specificity can be important.

4. “The difference between the almost right word & the
right word is really a large matter – it’s the difference
between the lightning bug and the lightning.”
Mark Twain
Semantics

5. Semantics
teabowl
vs.
yunomi
vs.
Chawan

6. Lost in Translation
Director: Sofía Coppola
Writer: Sofía Coppola
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris, Akiko Takeshita, Ryuichiro Baba, Catherine Lambert
Used under “Fair Use”

7. 湯飲み
Yunomi
湯 Yu - meaning “hot water”
Nomi - meaning “to drink”飲み

8. 湯飲み
Yunomi
Literal translation is “hot water drink”

9. 湯飲み
Yunomi
The best English language equivalent is maybe
“CUP”
or possibly even
“HOT BEVERAGE CUP”

10. 湯飲み
Yunomi
Nowhere in that name do we find this Kanji character
茶

11. 茶碗
Chawan
The Kanji used above here are specific
to a container for
camellia sinensis (tea).

12. 湯飲み vs. 茶碗
Yunomi Chawan

13. Some Common
Chawan Shapes

14. 井戸型
Well Type
Ido-gata

15. 半筒型
Semi-cylindrical
Han tsutsu-gata
Freer/Sackler Collection

16. Freer/Sackler Collection
呉記型
Goki Type
Goki-gata

17. Some Basics

18. Chanoyu

19. Chanoyu

20. Chanoyu

21. Chanoyu
Matcha is powdered tea

22. Whisking powdered Matcha

23. Chanoyu
Matcha is powdered tea

24. Chanoyu
Koicha- Thick Tea
Usucha– Thin Tea

25. About Chawan
“It has to be a well-balanced,
pleasantly-weighted form that brings
together all aspects of composition
from the way the lip is angled, to the
curves of the body and how that will
influence the inner “pool,” all the way
down to the underside where the
kodai-foot is carved.”
Robert Yellin
Japan Times
“Chawan: Simply, some of the hardest works of pottery to create”
September 25, 2013

26. Evaluating Chawan

27. What do Chawan have to do with skiing?

28. Easiest More Difficult Most Difficult Caution

29. Chanoyu
Chawan Rating System
Easiest More Difficult Most Difficult Caution

30. The Expected
“The nailthat sticksup gets hammered down.”

31. Various Technical Considerations

32. 取り合わせ
Toriawase

33. Rank has Privledges

34. In the right context…
a hubcap could be a Chawan.

35. Easiest

36. Easiest
• Very lightweight and goodbalance
• Very smooth glazes and surfaces
• Distinctand regular foot
• Tried and true forms
• Good heightand widthfor whisking
• Simple surfaces anddecorations
• Very much fittingthat which is “expected”

37. Easiest

41. More Difficult

42. More Difficult
• Light to moderate in weight
• Slightlyless centered balance
• Moderately rough glazes or surfaces
• Slightlyunusual and asymmetricalforms
• Not easy shape in which to whisk
• Stronger visualsurfaces/ decorations
• Slightlychallengingthe “expected”

47. Most Difficult

48. Most Difficult
• Very heavy weight
• Roughsurfaces in mikomi / kuchi
• Challengingforms
• Non-central balance point
• Difficultto grip the foot
• Highlycomplex surfacesanddecorations
• Visuallyhard to fit into“Toriawase”
• Notmuch fittingthat whichis “expected”

56. Caution!

57. Caution!
• An extreme of weight(usuallyvery heavy)
• Totallyabnormalsize
• Extremely rough surfacesand/or glazes
• Totallyunusual/ sculptural forms
• Excessivelybold/aggressivedecoration
• Notat allfittingthatwhich is “expected”

58. Overarching
Everything

59. Tradition
旧典

68. The Expected
“The nailthat sticksup gets hammered down.”

69. Traditionputs us in a bitof a box.
旧典Tradition

71. Emotion

72. Gender

73. Death

74. You have lived long and prospered, Leonard!
R.I.P.

82. Endless possibilities within a tight set of “norms”.

83. Key Considerations
For Chawan

84. #1
Size

85. Saizu : サイズ
13 cm
8 cm
Or very close to this

86. 1 : 1.618

87. 1 : 1.618
Honami Koetsu Chawan 17th Cen. Victoria and Albert Museum

88. 1 : 1.618
Momoyama Jidai Nezumi Chawan Gotoh Museum

89. 1 : 1.618
Arakawa Toyozo Shino Chawan 20th Cen.

90. Why?
13 cm

91. Why?

92. Why?
Need to ‘nestle’ into humanhands.

93. Dou 胴

95. #2
Weight

96. Weight 重量
Overall about
454 grams
-1 pound-
Or very close to this

97. Weight 重量
Typical fired is between300 grams and 600 grams.
If wet clay is about 30% water
weight, that means a finished
form made with about
390 grams to 780 grams
of wet clay.
0.86 to 1.7 pounds

98. Weight 重量
Whenfired, they are about 350 grams.
For the “standard” aka raku
forming process, the starting
disk of clay before forming
and carving is 1 Kilogram.
2.2 pounds

99. #3
Balance

100. CenterOf Mass 質量中心
Balance at center
Distributionof weightmattersa lot.

101. #4
Interior Surface

102. Relatively smooth surface.
Mikomi 見込

103. Transition betweenwall and floor not “creased”.
Mikomi 見込

104. The whisk’s tinesare very fragile.
Mikomi 見込

105. Transition betweenwall and floor not “creased”.
Mikomi 見込
Koshi ‘- transition curve

106. #5
Quality of the Rim

107. Contactwiththe lips.
Kuchi Zukuri 口造

108. Ritualwiping of the rim of thebowl
Chakin 茶巾

109. Chakin 茶巾

110. Chakin 茶巾

111. Chakin 茶巾

113. #6
The “grip-ability” of the Foot

114. Koudai 高台

115. Using the Kensui 建水

116. Using the Chakin 茶巾

117. Presenting the Bowl

118. #7
The “Tea Pool”

119. There usually is a depression called the “Tea Pool”.
Chadamari 茶だまり

120. There usually is a depression called the “Tea Pool”.
Chadamari 茶だまり

121. There usually is a depression called the “Tea Pool”.
Chadamari 茶だまり

122. Aesthetic Concerns

123. #A
Quality of the clay body

124. The uniquequalitiesof the clay body.
Tsuchi Aji 土味

125. The uniquequalitiesof the clay body.
Tsuchi Aji 土味

126. #B
The “Front”

127. One side of the bowlis the focal point.
Shomen 正面

128. One side of the bowlis the focal point.
Shomen 正面

129. #C
“Landscapes”

130. It takes a longtime to get to know it.
Keshiki 景色

131. Keshiki 景色
It takes a longtime to get to know it.

132. Keshiki 景色
It takes a longtime to get to know it.

133. Keshiki 景色
It takes a longtime to get to know it.

134. Making Better Chawan
Study some Tea

144. http://www.urasenke.or.jp/texte/

145. THANK YOU!

147. Addendum

148. It’s a Business!
円
or
$

149. 100 made
80-90 smashed
Business

150. If you sell only a small fraction
of the pieces you make,
you have to charge for the
lost labor time and materials
in the pieces you will sell.
Business

151. “If I made more of them,
the price would not remain high.”
Business

152. It is not only about maintaining
the highest aesthetic standards,
it is also about maintaining the
market value of the investment
in your work others have made.
Business

153. Example: recent national teabowl exhibition
Entry fee: $30
Shipping work: At least $20
Sale Commission: 40%
Piece Price Limit: $250 each
Business

154. Fixed costs: about $50 (maybe more)
Maximum to the artist: $150
($250 limit x 60%)
Maximum Net: $100
Business
Skilled car mechanics get $75 an hour!

155. 64 pieces in the show
Business

156. 68% priced under $100
(60% = $60)
38% priced $50 and under
(60% = $30)
4% were less than the entry fee!
Average price was $80
Business

157. 68% made $10 or less if the piece sold!
38% made absolutely nothing or
lost money if the piece sold!
Business

158. THANK YOU!