Tea Ceremony Demonstration

Tea was first introduced to Japan from China in the early 9th century by Buddhist monks. This event, coinciding with our current gallery exhibition, None Whatsoever: Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection, highlights the role of Zen as the philosophical and spiritual roots of the time-honored and profound practice of chanoyu (tea ceremony). An interactive demonstration of the tea ceremony follows the presentation where the audience is invited to participate. The tea ceremony is led by Omotesenke tea practitioners, who have practiced and nurtured this tradition for over 400 years. No experience necessary. Limited class size.

Omotesenke Domonkai Eastern Region, USA, is one of North America’s four Omotesenke Domonkai regional groups. Omotesenke Domonkai, with its headquarters in Kyoto, is an Association of tea practitioners who practice the Omotesenke way of chanoyu. Omotesenke Chanoyu has been handed down for over 400 years through generations of Sen Rikyu’s descendants, supported by their students. Omotesenke Domonkai Eastern Region, USA is a 501(c3) organization founded in 2010 with a mission to “act as a bridge between Japan and the USA” whose activities — including public tea ceremonies and the organization of informative events on Japanese culture centered around Chanoyu — are rooted in communities, centered around its branches in the New York  and Washington, DC metro regions; Florida; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Seattle, WA.   

None Whatsoever: Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yellen Collection
March 8—June 16, 2024

None Whatsoever: Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection explores the origins of Zen Buddhism through over four centuries of ink paintings and calligraphies by painter-monks, including the celebrated Buddhist master Hakuin Ekaku.

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Top Image: Daphne Youree.

None Whatsoever: Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection is supported, in part, by the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation.

Japan Society programs are made possible by leadership support from Booth Ferris Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Exhibitions and Arts & Culture Lecture Programs are made possible, in part, by Sompo Holdings, Inc.; the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Endowment Fund; the Mary Griggs Burke Endowment Fund established by the Mary Livingston Griggs and Mary Griggs Burke Foundation; The Masako Mera and Koichi Mera, PhD Fund for Education and the Arts; Peggy and Dick Danziger; and Friends of the Gallery. Support for Arts & Culture Lecture Programs is provided, in part, by the Sandy Heck Lecture Fund. Transportation assistance is provided by Japan Airlines, the official Japanese airline sponsor for Japan Society gallery exhibitions.