Kengo Kuma’s Floating Tea House
March 2009 National Building Museum Online
On March 28, the National Building Museum is proud to once again host the National Cherry Blossom Festival® Family Day and Opening Ceremony. The day features hands-on activity stations exploring Japanese arts and design, cultural demonstrations, and exciting indoor and outdoor performances.
As part of the day’s events, the Museum will install Fu-an, a contemporary “floating” Japanese tea room and present a discussion with architect Kengo Kuma. The Museum extends its thanks to the Japanese Embassy for assistance with translation, installing the tea house, and arranging for the architect’s travel. During the Festival, Mr. Kuma will conduct two 20 minute moderated discussions at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm, on the inspiration of his design.
National Building Museum (NBM) Online asked Mr. Kuma for his insight into the history and importance of the tea house to Japanese culture and to describe his innovative design.
NBM Online: What role does the tea house play in Japanese culture?
Kengo Kuma: The tea house provides a place for intimate communication between the culturally sophisticated. It’s similar to the country clubs in England, but the communication that happens in the smaller spaces of the tea house is a very dense form of communication.
NBM Online: What was the inspiration for your “Floating Tea House”?
Kuma: What defines the space of a tea house is its lightness and impermanence. In traditional Japanese thought, something light is thought to be of superior cultural value to something heavy. The concept of “floating” represents the epitome of lightness.
NBM Online: How does your design connect with traditional Japanese tea houses’ designs? How is it different?
Kuma: In the beginning, tea house designs, and the tea ceremonies held there, were less restricted. But in the 19th and 20th centuries, designs became rigid and conservative. “Fu-an” (the Floating Tea House) attempts to revive the freedom and critical spirit of the original tea houses.
NBM Online: Proportion is an essential element to tea house architecture. How do your designs address proportion and the house’s relationship to the tea ceremony?
Kuma: For the purposes of this exhibition, Fu-an has been designed to cover a space of 4.5 tatami mats, an average size for a tea room. But in actuality, what sets Fu-an apart is that it is free to cover a space of any size or proportions. This freedom was a part of the original tea rooms and ceremonies.
NBM Online: A Japanese tea house is meant to spark aesthetic and intellectual fulfillment. How does your design accomplish this?
Kuma: Originally, the tea house was meant as a place to test the aesthetic sensibilities and intellectual levels of the people gathered there. It was a place to competitively size each other up and affirm one another’s trustworthiness. A tea house that repeats the same old forms will lack that function, but a more avant garde tea house can fill such a role. Fu-an is an example of avant garde art, meant to challenge the intellect and test the aesthetic senses of those who come to see it.
Learn more about the National Cherry Blossom Festival® Family Day and Opening Ceremony.
The National Cherry Blossom Festival® Family Day and Opening Ceremony is sponsored by Target®. The event is also supported by The Home Depot, The Washington Examiner, and Westwood College.
