presentation

Christopher Kitchen


Calming Leaves is a fountain tea brewer inspired by moments of contemplation sitting under trees at night. It mimics the calming nature of watching rustling leaves by mimicking it’s turbulent movement with water, and brewing tea in the process. 


Calming Leaves is an array of ceramic “leaves” attached at one point to maintain rotational freedom. As the water flows over each leaf, it changes their positions to create a constantly evolving path to flow through. This irregularity mimics the turbulent movements of leaves in the wind, and offers an engaging experience no matter how many times it’s used. Each leaf is a strainer for tea leaves, brewing the water flowing through. Using slip casting to produce the leaves allowed quick, reliable production of many leaves, and kept everything food safe. This project takes the already calming ritual of brewing tea, and adds a visual element.