Butsu Butsu is an interactive installation series explores gift culture. Using a teaism as a vehicle, I invite audiences to engage in barter-based tea gatherings.

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It is a simple act - a host and guests share a moment through serving and being served tea, which is normally in exchange for monetary value decided by the host and received when guests agree to provide the stated amount. In this installation series, however, participants are encouraged to partake in barter through non monetary values, such as objects, skills or favors.

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I hope for both the audiences and myself to cultivate something beyond the exchange of commodities and services, through participating in this chain of gifts and the shared experience within the installation.

 

The collected gift are the symbol of kindness and the gesture of creativity, and will be archived as the series continues to grow.