Recently, I have been hearing the words “art thinking” and “design thinking” a lot.

When I went to art college and studied in the art department, I learned the difference between art and design.

I learned the difference between art and design as follows: “Art is problem-posing, design is problem-solving.

In this article, I would like to introduce how I found the relevance of the tea ceremony to the art and design thinking that has been attracting so much attention.

１：Art Thinking and Design Thinking

・Art Thinking

Focusing on how people feel and what they think, rather than on whether or not many people can relate to or understand them.

・Design thinking

Emphasis is placed on the optimization of how to deliver a certain product to a large number of people and how to use or show it in a better way.

In concrete terms, this means that we can use artistic thinking to imagine, and design thinking to create and communicate it.

In fact, these two can be considered to be included in the elements in the tea ceremony.

２：Art Thinking in Tea Ceremony

・Art Thinking

Focusing on how people feel and what they think, rather than on whether or not many people can relate to or understand them.

This is exactly what the spirituality of the tea ceremony is all about. The tea ceremony is a way to confront and learn from Zen and the teachings of spirituality.

Studying etiquette and teachings can sometimes lead to introspection and an emphasis on the unseen.

It is up to each individual to decide what to think and feel, but the tea ceremony is a culture that places great importance on these aspects.

３：Design Thinking in Tea Ceremony

・Design thinking

Emphasis is placed on the optimization of how to deliver a certain product to a large number of people and how to use or show it in a better way.

This goes hand in hand with the manner of the tea ceremony. Tea ceremony etiquette is “the most beautiful and rational way to attract people to drink tea in order to make it most delicious.

The tea ceremony is a way of optimizing the tea for that purpose.

Tea ceremony has Art thinking and Design thinking.

When people think of the tea ceremony, they tend to think of it as “just drinking tea” or “something that requires sitting on the floor.

However, if you think about it in terms of art and design, as I did, you will find the tea ceremony much more interesting.