Introduction
The Deji Art Museum, in collaboration with the Jiangsu Tea Society, held a classic art and cultural performance at Deji Plaza, inviting the first batch of experiencers who are keen on inheriting traditional culture to personally participate in the tea-pointing activity, allowing them to experience the aesthetics and lifestyle of Song Dynasty literati.
The Song Dynasty was the peak period of Chinese tea culture, where people ranging from nobles and literati to merchants and commoners regarded tea drinking as a fashion, with ‘tea pointing’ as the primary method. The tea pointing in the Song Dynasty not only had strict technical requirements but also focused on the expression of artistic conception.
Tea pointing involves grinding tea leaves into powder, placing them in a tea cup, and gently adding water before whisking vigorously to mix the tea into a milky consistency for drinking. The experiencers held tea whisks as the greenish tea liquid oscillated uniformly in the cup, as if getting into the time and space for a dialogue with the literati of the Song Dynasty. The tea, slightly bitter yet refreshing, carries the humanistic spirit, allowing each participant to appreciate the aesthetic pleasure of traditional Chinese life.
In the hustle and bustle of the city’s most prosperous downtown, exploring the aesthetic of Song Dynasty literati through ‘tea pointing’ serves as a rethinking of modern life and a continuation of traditional Chinese culture and etiquette.
