RakuXV--Chawan Master Extraordinaire--Museum

Of all the chawan makers in Japan, at the top of the mountain stands alone Raku Kichizaemon XV. His chawan are of such depth in form and firing they have given the term Raku chawan a whole new meaning and dimension. More about his history can be read here:http://www.raku-yaki.or.jp/index-e.html
On September 15th this year a new annex was added to the Sagawa Art Museum on the shore of Lake Biwa--not far at all from Kyoto--and that annex is the Raku Kichizaemon Pavilion. I had the privilege to attend a preview opening and please enjoy a few photos of the magnificent museum that it is. One descends further and further down into a dark, almost vault-like area and then through a thin door; there appears Raku's chado Tea wares. The lightning is dim, the aura surrounding the rooms is one of reverence, and the works on display for the opening exhibition are divine. Yet, I only hope these works get to be used and not enslaved for all eternity behind glass and kept in museum store rooms. For the Sagawa Raku Pavilion I don't think this will be the case as the pavilion also includes two chashitsu-tea rooms. Raku-sensei noted in his speech that he did in fact want folks to use the chashitsu and I'm not sure, yet one may be able to reserve them. Raku also noted this is the first time he designed a chashitsu and that it was a challenging undertaking of which he labored over for years; the end result is truly stunning in the way the rooms incorporate natural lighting and materials, make profound use of space and how the rooms open up to the watery surroundings, and also the religious feeling one gets while meandering throughout the underground structure.　For any devotee of Tea a visit to this museum is highly recommended. More information and many photos and such can be viewed at the museum's web site, unfortunately it is in Japanese only: 　 http://www.sagawa-artmuseum.or.jp/rakuopen/