Meet Me at the Upside Down Table

‘Meet Me at the Upside Down Table’ Tyler Moorehead, 2018-19.

Tea experience and installation inspired by Japanese tea ceremonies and board game play. The piece draws on the 1906 english text 'Book of Tea', by Okakura Kakuzo which invites citizens to ‘cherish their unpolished selves’.

Four principles of Japanese tea - harmony, respect, purity and tranquility - become a form of ritual play in which guided reflection encourages empathy and appreciation of a stranger, over a cup of tea.

At the centre of the installation is a bespoke ‘tea table’ in the form of an esoteric board game. Tablecloths are displaced to uncover both the table and the truth. With overshadowing etiquette removed, pristine tablecloths hang idly as frozen ceiling sculptures, where they can do no harm.

Benches fashioned from bales of vintage tablecloths are designed to cause guests to rise and sit simultaneously as they move around the table. Forcing them to act in solidarity to ensure their mutual stability.

Photos: Bernadette Baksa

Meet Me at the Upside Down Table

Plywood, recycled felt, vegetable tanned leather, vintage lace and linen textiles.

Bespoke tea table and guidance card.

Example items concealed within the flaps in the tea table designed and fabricated by the artist.

Designed for participation

The site-specific installation in a disused cork factory adjacent to a London Underground station, accessible to people living, working and passing through a cultural and commercial hub in London, SE1.

MEET ME AT THE UPSIDE DOWN TABLE

Observers peer through hangings of sculpted lace and linen tablecloths to watch progressive tea ceremony unfold.

Testimonial following visit to the Upside Down Table experience