I took a Japanese tea ceremony class here in Oslo this week. It is something I never actually did back in Japan.
The instructor repositioned the tea bowl twice before serving. But what struck me was the bowl itself: slightly asymmetrical, with a glaze that caught the light unevenly. And the bamboo chashaku spoon, its curve worn smooth by years of use.
These weren’t perfect objects. They were perfect for this moment.
Watching her in this Scandinavian space, I suddenly understood ‘Ichigo Ichie’ (一期一会) "one time, one meeting" in a way I never had at home.
The way the bowl fit differently in each person’s hands, how the bamboo spoon’s particular bend scooped exactly the right amount of matcha for today’s temperature. She was honoring the specific conditions of right now: this guest, this December light at 3pm in Oslo, these particular tools meeting this exact need.
Living between cultures has taught me this in my design work too.
Each project exists in its own unrepeatable context:
This specific client
This Nordic market
This particular intersection of aesthetics
That is the perspective I try to bring to every brief. Not a rigid template, but a response to the "now."
Sometimes you have to leave home to remember what home taught you.
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