Thirsty Garten

26 November 2016 – 21 January 2017

Lou Cantor, Ella Goerner, Yanyan Huang, Martin Kohout, Andrew Munks, Daragh Reeves, Paul Sochacki, Keith Allyn Spencer, Tanaz Modabber, Michael Pybus, Mai Ueda, Abdul Vas, Rita Vitorelli / Harm van den Dorpel.

Thirsty Garten is a special exhibition as it takes influence from the beloved Thirsty Moon – a tea shop specialising in Chinese whole leaf teas – and Teri Garten – a gallery initiated by Paul Sochacki within the shop in Berlin Mitte, 2014–2016. Together they created a space for friendship, exchange and community.

In serendipity, The Composing Rooms opened in Berlin in April 2014 with Japanese tea ceremonies hosted by Mai Ueda. Being a space of, in Mai's words, “Internet Reflection” her Tea Ceremony focused on “the real spirit of tea by bringing together worldly life”.

Through the artists and their works, the exhibition reflects on the early dreams for the space, an influence of East on the West and a concept of a sustainable, or highly constructed utopia. A huge garden installation by Michael Pybus from 2014, titled ‘In 3D the basil never wilts’ – a reference to IKEA's increasing use of CGI to save money – serves as an environment for hosting tea and other events within the exhibition. The Composing Rooms invites proposals for other events such as readings, gatherings and talks.

Additional information on each artist / work available upon request.

Scheduled events:Saturday 3rd December, 4-6pm ‘Misty Moon Floatation’ – tea with Paul Sochacki

Friday 9th December, 6–9pm ‘Painting Regarding the Present’ – publication launch

Saturday 14th January, 4-6pm ‘Balanced Sip’ – tea with Ella Goerner