Chawan
Definition
A wide, open tea bowl used in Japanese tea ceremony (chanoyu) for preparing and drinking matcha. Chawan come in diverse styles - from rustic, irregular raku ware to refined porcelain - and are considered among the most important objects in Japanese ceramic art.
Why it matters
The chawan embodies the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi - finding beauty in imperfection. For matcha drinkers, the shape and size of the bowl directly affects whisking technique and the drinking experience. A good chawan is both functional tool and art object.