TEA HOUSE, 2012
In collaboration with architect Brian Ripel
Plastic stirrers, aluminum tubing, reclaimed timber, tea cups, tea
8 ft 10 in h x 15 ft 7 in w x 19 ft 3 in d
Installation at Rappaport Roof Terrace
Commissioned by the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum
Lincoln, MA, for the solo exhibition Retreat
Jean Shin: Tea House
Tea House is an outdoor pavilion fashioned from hundreds of thousands of red plastic drink stirrers, which provided shade and a place of retreat for visitors. While museum staff and docents served tea, visitors are invited afterward to strung their used tea bags on the structure to dry. While referencing the local history of the site (the Museum’s founder was a tea merchant), the work engages the community to reflect on intangible experience of retreat.