By Eliott Grover ’06 On a shelf above his desk, visual arts teacher Kevin Arnfield
When the students come in, they each select their cup for the
keeps a study collection of hand-sized ceramic cups. Beheld
afternoon. “It’s a personal choice,” Arnfield says, “an artistic
as a cluster, they form a photogenic mosaic. Individually, they
decision.” As they sip their tea and nibble on the confection
are even more striking. With different shapes, patterns, and tex-
du jour, they use the time to be present and enjoy each
tures, each cup is a universe unto itself.
other’s company.
“They ultimately derive from the Japanese tea ceremony cups
“We’re just casual,” Arnfield says. “It’s just about being friendly
that go back five hundred years,” Arnfield says. The cups were
and having a little unscripted time together. Life, in general, in
introduced to Japan from China between the 13th and 15th
institutions can be very scripted. Students really react to having
centuries CE. The ones adorning Arnfield’s shelf are a study
a little bit of downtime, even if it’s just fifteen minutes for a
collection comprising the work of professional artists sprinkled
cup of tea.”
with some teacher and past student examples. “They’re very popular in contemporary ceramics, like a little sketch pot for studio potters to explore surface ideas. I like them a lot. I make them, I teach with them, and I use them for this daily ritual.”
Sometimes the conversation will focus on a specific cup or a particular technique, but Arnfield believes the students are learning about art even if there’s no academic discussion. “Just using and touching the cups is one of the wonderful things about
During the winter, Arnfield oversees Tabor’s afternoon art pro-
ceramics,” he says. “It’s an art that’s democratic and individual,
gram. In recent years, he’s started a tradition that has become
but sort of common at the same time. It’s a wonderful way for
quite popular. Every afternoon, before students arrive, he lines
people to connect to art because it’s not intimidating.”
up a selection of these cups on a table in the studio. He then makes two pots of tea, one caffeinated and one decaffeinated, and sets them next to milk and honey. Finally, he lays out some sort of baked treat, usually cookies or scones.
32 TABOR TODAY | Spring 2022
While the cups are appreciated by the winter art students, they play a more active role in the advanced ceramics course. “Those students are a lot more certain about which cups they like
