Notebook / Mobile Tea House for Artist Taro Hattori’s Rolling Counterpoint Project
September 18, 2024
Collaborative Design Build Process with the Artist
Rolling Counterpoint was commissioned to Taro Hattori by the Lucas Artists Program at Montalvo Arts Center and was developed collaboratively with eleven partners throughout the Bay Area.
Koji Saida of Saida + Sullivan Design Partners participated in the project to collaborate with Taro Hattori for the tea house’s design-build process.
Taro Hattori in his website states “Rolling Counterpoint was a space for encounter designed to foster public dialogue about notions of division and belonging in contemporary society. Seeking to respond to the divisive discourse of a fraught election cycle” Please visit the websites that feature the project:
Koji Saida of Saida + Sullivan Design Partners participated in the project to collaborate with Taro Hattori for the tea house’s design-build process.
Taro Hattori in his website states “Rolling Counterpoint was a space for encounter designed to foster public dialogue about notions of division and belonging in contemporary society. Seeking to respond to the divisive discourse of a fraught election cycle” Please visit the websites that feature the project:
Rolling Counterpoint Event (From Taro Hattori’s Website)
Design Process: Idea of Tea House
Through discussions with Taro to understand the role of the tea house in his Rolling Counterpoint, the following items were taken into design consideration: the tea house will be on the trailer to travel around the bay area, and a sense of strong connection to the adjacent environment. Also, his interest in Azekura-zukuri (a Japanese architectural style characterized by joint-log structures) became an inspiration for the design.
Concept Sketch by Taro Hattori (left) and Aekura-zukuri (right)
Design Process: Wall Assembly
We came up with the idea of building walls with a series of “byobu,” a panelized folding screen. Folding screens are made of 2x2 lumber with steel rod hinges.
Byobu Screen (example), Mockup Sketches, and Photo (Mockup built by Taro Hattori)
Design Process: Model Study
Basswood Model
Design Process: Drawings
The Tea House consists of eleven folding screen panels and two roof components. This system was developed to disassemble the Tea House into parts and load them on the trailer when traveling. Then, the parts can be assembled quickly to build the Tea House on the site. The drawings were color-coded for clarity of joint sequence.
Panel Configurations
Tea House Plan and Elevations
Building Teahouse
Folding Screen Parts (A full-scale floor plan was used to assure the parts’ dimensional accuracy, seen on the floor)
Folding Screens and Roofs
Parts Assembly Process on Trailer
Detail
A compression spring was used to observe the lumber’s shrinkage/ expansion. Brass pipes support roofs and accommodate the spring connection within.
End Fastner with Compression Spring (left) Within Brass Pipe Roof Support (right)
Near Completion
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