BACKGROUND
Japan House Then and Now
The story of Japan House began in 1964 when Shozo Sato, then artist-in-residence at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and now Professor Emeritus in the School of Art and Design, started teaching courses that focused on the art and culture of Japan. According to Professor Jennifer Gunji-Ballsrud, Sato was eventually allowed to renovate an old Victorian house to teach classes. He transformed the Victorian house into a Japanese environment, which was known as Japan House. For years, the Victorian house was the center for the study of Japanese arts and aesthetics. With the redevelopment of the U of I campus, Japan House needed to find a new home.
Determined to create a new home for Japan House, Professor Kimiko Gunji raised funds for the current traditionally Japanese style structure. Through generous private donations, the newly developed Japan House was dedicated in June 1998 with Professor Kimiko Gunji as director. According to the Japan House website, “The focus of the traditionally Japanese styled structure is its three authentic tea rooms surrounding a large class and activity room.”
In 2012, Professor Jennifer Gunji-Ballsrud became the next director of Japan House. Building on the foundation laid by Sato and Gunji, Gunji-Ballsrud was able to continue to grow student integration and involvement.
Today, Japan House continues to practice and share the Urasenke Way of Chado. Urasenke is one of the main tea schools in Japan. Amongst the tea schools, Urasenke has become the largest tradition of Chado in Japan and throughout the world, according to the Urasenke Tankokai Federation.
The Way of Chado is the Japanese tea ceremony. The art form is over 450 years old and is the act of hosting and serving tea, which is comprised of a series of many distinct, precise and graceful actions. According to Sen Sōshitsu XV, each action reflects the principles of the Way of Chado – harmony, respect, purity and tranquility – as identified by one of the greatest tea masters, Sen Rikyu (Page 13, Tea Life, Tea Mind).
The decision to showcase Japan House and the tea ceremony relates to sharing the history of drinking matcha tea, which has become popularized in the United States by coffee shops like Starbucks™. According to Google Trends, the search term "matcha" began to spike in January 2014 and reached an all-time high this March.
To showcase Japan House and the tea ceremony, we recorded the experience with a 360º camera because we believe the topic is fitting for a virtual reality setting. According to Jeremy Bailenson, a rule of thumb for judging if a topic is fit for VR is that it is “perfect for things you couldn’t do in the real world, but not for things you wouldn’t do in the real world” (Page 250, Experience on Demand). Not many places in America have a fully equipped, authentic Japanese tearoom like the one at the Japan House. Hence, VR technology is the perfect way to allow audiences to personally experience this rare and beautiful art form.
Moreover, for guests, the tea ceremony is largely an observatory activity. It follows Bailenson’s second rule of “Don’t make people sick” (Page 253, Experience on Demand). With very little movement in the process, it is unlikely for the audience to experience motion sickness. Instead, it provides a space for relaxation and serenity.
For these reasons, we believe that the tea ceremony is the perfect event to showcase using VR technology. The goal behind our video is to showcase the unique experience at Japan House as well as capture the essence of the Way of Chado.