Japanese green tea 【6th September 2017】 What is it exactly after all? Nowadays we see so many different kinds of Japanese tea in every corner of London, from superfood matcha latte to genmai cha. However, do we really know what they are exactly and how to use them, not only for making a cup of tea? During 1 hour long session, a Japanese tea expert from Japan, Mrs. Noriko Sonoda, the Director of ‘Sonoda Chaho Hoko-en’ will make a personal introduction to the world of Japanese tea. She will reveal some of the secrets of green tea and introduce you to some very practical knowledge, including the difference in benefits between … Read More

Morgan De Laporte 【15th – 31st August 2017】   Morgan de Laporte is a French photographer focused on street and travel photography. Mixing analogue and digital tools, he shows here his journey around Honshu Island. This series of photographs explore the Japanese rythmes of life. Travelling through the gigantic mazes of Tokyo, Osaka and Yokohama, always in the spectator’s position. He captures the workers and dreamers of Japan’s sprawling megalopolis; frozen moments of cities in constant movement and its inhabitants who snooze and feed these never-sleeping giants. A journey that also takes him to the more peaceful life in the snowy mountains of Nikko and Nagano, where nature – the … Read More

Furuki-Yo Kimono 【3rd – 12th August 2017】 Sway Gallery London is delighted to present Sonoe Sugawara, a London-based vintage kimono dealer and owner of Furuki Yo-Kimono Vintage, which showcases the world of vintage & antique kimono. The name is a play on the Japanese expression, Furuki Yo-Kimono Vintage (ふるきよきもの) which means ‘good old things’. Sonoe has been collecting vintage kimono for years and has become a source for Western kimono lovers including designers of some of the world’s leading fashion brands. The main collection of her kimonos are from 1920-30s pre-war period known in Japan as the Taisho period and Japanese Art Deco period when Western modernism mingled with Japanese … Read More

Special event 【10th – 22nd July 2017】 Japan has a long history of Buddhism and religious mythology: having derived many from other Asian cultures. One popular belief is that there is a God in everything, and this even includes sake – a sacred drink of the Gods. Until the 20th century, Kyushu was seen as Japan’s gateway to the world and a centre for trade. It has historically been the first stop for foreign traders and travellers to Japan and the place from where outside influences would spread to the rest of the country.Time has moved on, but the landscapes, legends and tradition of sake making remain to this day. … Read More

David Davies [6th – 28th July 2017] Glorious Imperfection – the kintsugi drawings Private view: Thursday 6th July, 18:00 – 20:00 – Book your ticket here In the West, when a piece of ceramic gets broken, our inclination is to repair as invisibly as possible. The Japanese feel differently, and approach the task in an almost opposite way. They employ a technique known as `kintsugi’. Rather than try to hide the marks and cracks of breakage, they illuminate them with gold, silver, copper, or sometimes bright pigments that contrast vividly with the base colour of the ceramic. Their thinking comes from `wabi sabi’, a Japanese derivation of the Chinese Buddhist … Read More

Various [16th – 29th June 2017] Four ceramic artists from Japan, the UK and Italy explore aspects of Japanese art and culture through their work. Each artist, all from different backgrounds, is drawn towards a particular theme – ceramic tradition, aesthetics, philosophy and traditional theatre. Kiramics organically creates objects with functional and sculptural forms exploring different technical processes that are deeply influenced by Zen garden aesthetics and art of Haiku poetry. MORI makes individual functional and semi-functional ware influenced by the memories of his mother and grandmother’s traditional Japanese domestic pottery. JO AYLMER makes slip cast porcelain vessels that respond to the Japanese writer Junichiro Tanizaki’s statement, ‘Were it not for shadows, … Read More