After several tea tastings in spring and summer, we have been looking for other themes that are consistent with tea.

In recent years, Japanese wagashi production has become popular in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and other places. Junichi Mitsubori @junichi_mitsubori, founder of Kadou Ichika-ryu, was invited by the Asia Society four years ago to demonstrate his original needle-cutting skills to the New York audiences, which caused a sensation. This autumn, he flew to New York again from Tokyo and brought a four-day intensive wagashi-making course to the local fans. In addition to having a large number of fans in Japan, Mitsubori also has huge influence overseas, making him the number one player in the Japanese wagashi industry.

We will invite Xinxin He, direct disciple of Junichi Mitsubori, to give us a dedicated wagashi-making workshop on Nov. 12th. The "Cha Guo Zi ( 茶果子 )" in 7s Art Tea Ceremony is based on "Japanese wagashi ( 和果子 )", combined with Chinese history and contemporary aesthetics and tastes, and improved by reducing sugar and adding rich fillings. 

BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE

The origins of wagashi (和果⼦, わがし) can be traced back to China. More than a thousand years ago, Japan sent envoys to the Tang Dynasty to bring Tang Guo Zi (唐果⼦) back to Japan.

In the Song Dynasty, Zen master Rong Xi (栄⻄) brought the whisked tea culture to Japan. With the popularity of whisked tea, "chestnuts", "pancakes" and "chestnut flour cakes” as Cha Guo Zi (茶果⼦) became common snacks for tea ceremonies. Lin Jingyin (林浄因), a monk from the Song Dynasty who traveled to Japan, brought steamed buns to Japan. Since meat was prohibited in Japan at that time, he changed the meat stuffing of steamed buns into bean stuffing, which laid the prototype of today's wagashi.

After the spread of the Tang and Song dynasties’ snacks and the influence of European snacks represented by the Netherlands, by the Edo period, Japanese wagashi entered a mature stage. The various preparation methods and shapes of common wagashi can be traced back to this era.

7s Art will infuse its unique aesthetics inherited from the Chinese scholars' tradition into all aspects of the event—from the spatial and chaxi (tea stage/theater) arrangement to the selection and preparation of teas and desserts, as well as the tea gathering procedure. We will present to New York's tea lovers a delicate experience of taste and aesthetics to allow the guests to feel the essence of the summer.

Host

Wagashi-making: Xinxin He

Tea Ceremony: Kevin Ge

Time

Sunday

NOV 12, 2023

Session 1

1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Session 2

4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Location

7S Art labo

36 E Broadway, 2nd FL

New York, NY 10002

Admissions

$88/guest

Availability

Seats are limited, please RSVP

Notes

1. To ensure the best experience for all guests, please arrive 15 minutes before the tea gathering.

2. To facilitate tasting, please don't wear perfume.

3. Please keep your phone in silent mode during the tea ceremony and off the tea table. No photos allowed.

4. All sales are final. If we have to cancel the tea gathering due to unprecedented reasons, it will be rescheduled upon further notice.