Tea Architecture:
Development of Soan (Rustic Teahouse)
Historical Background
During the Heian-period (794-1185), Japanese society was governed by an aristocratic
class, whose residential architecture is known as shinden style. Some key aspects
of that style are the absence of wall-to-wall tatami mats; no thin-paper doors,
shoji; and a central hall (shinden) that faced southward onto broad, sand-covered
entry court.
The following Kamakura period (1185-1333) witnessed the sudden ascendancy of
the military class (buke) whose residential architecture was designed to suit
their own requirements, becoming somewhat more defensive in nature. Although
still south facing, entry to the main hall was through side antechambers (kuruma
yose, genkan)
In the Muromachi period (1333-1568), with the pervasion of Zen Buddhist and literati
cultures through the ruling classes, buke-style architecture developed into a "literate
man's" architecture known as the shoin style, found both in Zen temples
and military residences. The shoin is a writing alcove (a sign of a literate
person) that gives name to the style of architecture in general. This style of
architecture featured wall-to-wall tatami mats; shoji doors; a formal layout
of rooms; squared and planed wooden posts and beams; walls covered with paper
or white lime plaster; and a formal display alcove, tokonoma. One hall of the
residence, called a kaisho or formal reception room (literally, meeting place)
was a venue for social gatherings including tea competitions, tocha.
As early tea masters began their experiments with rustic tea, wabicha, they also
began to develop a setting for their tea gatherings that was appropriate to the
ideals of subdued aesthetics and introversion. They attempted to evoke the atmosphere
of a mountain hermitage within the urban context by building simple huts in the
rear portion of their properties: Zen temples, merchants townhouses, and military
lord's residences. These were known as "hermitages in the city," shichu
no sankyo, or shichuin.
Important Components of Rustic Tea Huts:
• Very small size; yojohan (about 9 feet square) or smaller
• Thatched or fine-shingle roof
• Exposed clay plastered walls, often finished only in "middle layer" clay
naka-nuri
• Posts and beams, and other exposed wood members, are light weight and
in their natural form (not squared and planed, some species with the bark still
on)
• Sword-rack outside, katana-kake
• Small "crawl-through" entry door, nijiri-guchi
• Windows that appear to reveal wall structure, shitaji mado
• Wall-to-wall tatami mats
• Tokonoma, display alcove, in which a scroll or flower will be displayed
• Ro, brazier, in which water for tea will be boiled