Youth Member Event: Traditional Tea Ceremony and Ceramic Studio Visit

On September 26th, our youth members are invited to join us for a visit to Haruka’s ceramic studio, where she will share the fascinating history and techniques behind Kigata Banko ceramics. Afterwards, we’ll head to her tea hut, where she will introduce us to the Ōbaku Baisa Ryū school of Sencha and perform a traditional tea ceremony. Throughout the day, you will enjoy two infusions of Gyokuro green tea, Japanese sweets, and a curated selection of other teas. We will wrap up the day with a presentation on her Tea Tree, Tea Treaty tea hut project, followed by a Q&A session.

Matsuo Haruka, a Japanese artist/designer, ceramist and tea master, holds degrees from Kyoto City University of Arts and the Gerrit Rietveld Academy, and currently lives and works in the Netherlands. She is the ninth-generation successor to be working in Kigata Banko, a rare traditional technique in which a thin layer of clay is wrapped around a special wooden mold. The result is a thin and light ceramic piece, perfect for drinking green tea. In May of this year, she opened her self-designed tea house "Tea Tree, Tea Treaty", made of recycled and reused materials, through which she explores how the traditional Japanese tea house can be reinterpreted in modern society. 

The visit to Haruka's ceramic studio and tea hut will take place on 26 September 2026, 13:00-16:00 @ Mierenmeent 122, Hilversum. Costs are €24,50 (30+) / €7,50 (until age 29). Sign-up can be done through THIS LINK. For more information on Matsuo Haruka and her work: Haruka's website / Haruka's Instagram.