Skip to content

VA Pfau Thompson - Featured Tea Artist

I love and respect artists.

Thanks to this blog and tea-loving communities such as the Green Tea Club Private Facebook Group, I often have the opportunity to meet with great tea artists. I always wanted to use my blog to showcase my personal favorite tea artists who are in the Japanese tea industry.

This is my first attempt to do this.

Let me introduce VA Pfau Thompson, who lives in the USA but has lived in Japan. Here are her great tea artworks, and scroll down to her bio and message about her experience living in Japan.

I hope you enjoy it. If you are a tea artist and want me to introduce your artwork to the tea-loving community, please contact me here.

 Art by VA Pfau Thompson 

Lotus Teapots ready for the wood kiln


 Wood-fired lotus tea set and green lotus teacups

 

My kitty Frida inspects a wood-fired Lotus Teapot

Message from VA Pfau Thompson

I had been a double English Lit and Art major in my undergraduate studies before moving to Japan, and ceramics and pottery were two of my favorite classes. After teaching ESL for 3 years and traveling Japan, I decided to make it my career.

I attended the Aichi University of Fine Arts (愛知県立芸術大学) as a research student for a year and got to learn traditional Japanese Ceramics techniques.

The teapot lesson by a potter from Tokoname was my favorite! I learned how to make kyusu with spout-inset tea strainers, and since I am a bit of a "fussy" maker, I loved it! I still sometimes make this style of pot here in the US, but I don’t sell very many. Most people seem to think it is a "neti pot" because of the side handle. Anyways, now I am a full-time Ceramics and Sculpture instructor at a community college in southern Arizona, and I love educating my students and the community on pottery and tea!

I have been making pottery for over a decade, but I usually just sell it at craft fairs and locally and do not have an online store. My husband and I recently moved to a new house with room for a full studio for me, so my goal is to have my pottery business up and running within a year.

I absolutely LOVED living in Japan! I taught English in the public middle and elementary schools in Fuji-cho, Saga-ken, for 3 years (now I believe it has been absorbed by Saga City, and my older Hokuzan middle school is under a reservoir for the Fukuoka water supply).

Nearly every morning and afternoon at 10 and 3, I would enjoy tea and snacks in the teacher’s office break room with a few colleagues. I adored the gorgeous little snacks and made sure to get the best omiyage whenever I would travel to bring them back.

I had become a tea lover after visiting the UK and living there for a year, but I had never drunk properly prepared green tea before! It was delightful, and I came to love all the Japanese green teas, even the matcha, which was usually presented to me by third-grade students who made very amusing faces at the bitterness.

I am excited to do a better job of showing my work online and selling it in other venues once I get my private studio up and running.


Related Articles You May Be Interested

Can Teapot Make Your Green Tea Taste Better? - Facts About Tokoname Teapot (常滑急須)
Can Teapot Make Your  Green Tea Taste Better?  - Facts About  Tokoname Teapot (常滑急須)
Which Tea Kettle Should I Use to Brew Japanese Green Tea?
Which Tea Kettle Should I Use to Brew Japanese Green Tea?
Where Different Types of Japanese Tea are Grown
Where Different Types of Japanese Tea are Grown
How to Select Japanese Green Tea? - The Expert Advice
How to Select Japanese Green Tea?  - The Expert Advice

Get Free Bonus Books

Join Green Tea Club

Sign up for free to the Green Tea Club to get advice and exclusive articles about how to choose Japanese Tea, and tips, tricks, and recipes for enjoying Japanese tea.

Unsubscribe anytime. It’s free!

Related Posts

Does a Cup of Tea count as Water Intake?
Does a Cup of Tea count as Water Intake? - Green Tea Quiz

Uncover the truth: Does a cup of tea hydrate like water? Take the green tea quiz and learn about the science and myths s

Read More
WHAT TO DO WITH TEA GOING OUT OF DATE?
What To Do With Tea Going Out of Date?

Don't throw away expired tea! Discover creative ways to repurpose it and enjoy its benefits in various culinary and hous

Read More
Drinking Green Tea with Milk is Bad For You - True or False?  - Green Tea Quiz
Is Drinking Green Tea with Milk Bad For You? - Green Tea Quiz

Discover the truth about putting milk in green tea. Assess the potential consequences and debunk the myths surrounding t

Read More
Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published..

Cart

Your cart is currently empty.

Start Shopping

Select options