On December 19th last year, I posted an article that needs correcting. I thank Mary Douglas, curator of the Kamm Foundation teapot collection, for adding a comment that set me straight. She has been the curator of The Sparta Teapot Museum which is now closed to the public but the foundation continues to provide pieces from their collection to shows around the world.
My error was thinking that they also managed… read more...
Popularity: 1% [?]
I love the leaf. The history. The legends. The art and literature. I dream of visiting all the places where it is grown and the many ways it is brewed. The brewed tea that fills my cup becomes more magical as I venture into new taste experiences. The teaware. The… read more...
Popularity: 10% [?]
One thing I like about literature for children is that, in trying to write more simply, looking for the essence of a subject, we more easily and obviously touch the spiritual aspects. In the case of tea as a theme, I’m always delighted to find stories for children with a tea element. read more...
Popularity: 11% [?]
It’s the title of a blog by The Kamm Teapot Foundation where they offer reviews of some of the most interesting teapot artists and exhibitions spotlighting teapots. If you go to their blog site, http://teapotsteapotsteapots.blogspot.com/2006/02/kamm-teapot-foundation.html you will be able to go back through the hundreds of posts already online. I’ll start by saying that the navigation is minimal. The right sidebar will continue to display ten new teapot articles… read more...
Popularity: 15% [?]
I came across this story in the San Francisco Chronicle about a month ago and I’ve let it fester in a ‘what-does-this-mean’ kind of way. My conclusion is that Tea - the spirit of the plant and not the actress - want’s us to share a good laugh.
Judith Ets-Hokin, well known around here as… read more...
Popularity: 15% [?]
We tea people often find ourselves dancing on the head of the pin in discussions about professional qualifications.
What is a tea professional? Which school? How much travel? Required texts? What’s your niche? How many years have you been in the business? With whom have you studied? How much has it cost? Can you tell a Darjeeling from a Da Hong Pao? How many countries of origin can you list… read more...
Popularity: 63% [?]
In one of my previous posts I mentioned a local gallery show with a teapot theme. I had a few emails and phone calls asking what it was like.
The following photos are from a recent show at the Asif Studio in Grass Valley, CA. The artists featured here collaborate, combining various genre, all relating to the teapot. The artists vary not only in medium but also in age… read more...
Popularity: 26% [?]
I recently returned from my first trip to a country of origin, China. This kind of travel is something every tea-person I know has
Popularity: 27% [?]
The connection between the Art World & Tea Land has been one of my main blog themes. It was tea in art that lured me to the leaf. So, it gives me great pleasure to observe how this is being celebrated in at least two different California venues this month. One is Northern California and the other in Southern California. One is a very prestigious exhibition and the other is… read more...
Popularity: 33% [?]
I’ve been asking the question: What is it about tea that inspires art?
My last post featured the glass teapot sculpture of Richard Marquis. Work like his and other fine artists who use the teapot as a theme for non-functional sculpture continues to intrigue me. An teapot artist friend recently suggested that it was the annual teapot competition created by Celestial Seasonings in the late 1990’s that fueled the popularity of… read more...
Popularity: 39% [?]