Each season awakens a new sensibility and each bowl or cup shares the same responsibility.  In selecting a bowl or cup, one must  absorb its qualities, just as one absorbs the character of the day or moment.  It is easy to see that bowls like the black shino T607, red shino T  559 or gold shino T 563 should not be used  on the same day or even season.  Each has its own individual personality and seems to demand exclusive attention.

   “Tea” is not just a drink, it is a way of life passed down from generation to generation - from master to apprentice. 

    While tea can be enjoyed by millions in daily routine living a quality teabowl or cup can help change that routine moment of living to a memorable one or even a spiritual awakening.  To fully comprehend a teabowl or cup one must comprehend the essence of tea.  The best teabowls or cups, after many uses, may also teach much about the essence of tea.

   For more than fifty years Arthur Kyung Jae Park has worked to produce quality tea ware.  If you were to ask him, he would say that he is still far from his goal.  However, many knowledgeable tea ware connoisseurs in Asia are discovering and collecting his work.

The Ware

   Many factors determine the creation of quality tea ware.  It is influenced by the clay, wheel, glaze, decorating tools, atmosphere, fuel and kiln as much as the potter. 

   After more than fifty years of experience and studying under masters from three lands Arthur Kyung Jae Park has come to know that the fusion of these inner and outer powers create the best work - not the potter alone.  While many other ceramic artists relay on repeatable work and have standard pricing for it, Park wants to capture the qualities of nature in his work.  To do so, he must give himself up to the power and forces of nature.  For him, a pebble may be more valuable than a diamond.