A Closer Look: Episode 11 - how to appreciate a Japanese raku tea bowl

In the sixteenth century, a ceremony for appreciating tea, fine dining and conversation became popular with Japan’s elite Samurai class, especially those connected to Zen Buddhism. Over the centuries, these rituals were refined and given a set of conventions, and they are now known as “tea ceremony” or chanoyu (“the way of tea”). In chanoyu, the utensils used by tea masters were especially highlighted, and the more surprising, rustic and tactile they were, the more their wabi sabi aesthetic was appreciated by connoisseurs.

In this episode, Dr Kathleen Olive introduces us to a seventeenth-century tea bowl that exemplifies both the qualities of wabi sabi and the technique of raku.

Kathleen Olive

Kathleen is one of Australia’s best-known cultural tour leaders, with over fifteen years’ experience leading tours to Western Europe, North America, Australasia and Japan. 
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NICK GORDON

Nick Gordon is a cultural historian with a University Medal and PhD from the University of Sydney, and significant expertise designing modern and contemporary art-focused tours to Western Europe, Asia and Australasia. He is also a practising artist.