01 About
Harold Linde designs and facilitates Immersive Tea Experiences to generate presence, connection and awe for diverse audiences during this time of digital proliferation, climate chaos and growing social alienation.
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He considers Immersive Tea Experiences as a kind of primal technology–involving the primordial elements of fire, water, clay, and dried leaves–that elicit a wondrous state existing beyond words and based on direct, personal experience.
He has previously created and facilitated immersive tea experiences at TEDxUCLA, TEDxVeniceBeach, BlueMind Malibu Colloquium, UC Davis Open Studios and Summit LA17 & LA18. Linde designed and constructed the tea design research space Tea Studio #202 on the UC Davis campus in January 2019.
He has previously worked with the United Nations, Doctors Without Borders, Peace Corps, Free the Slaves, Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, Sundance Channel and PBS in places such as Rwanda, Uganda, Sudan, Ghana, Cambodia and Burma.
He holds in MFA in Design with a focus on immersive tea experiences and mindfulness practices–as well as an MA in Spiritual Psychology, MS in Environmental Education and BA in Film Studies.
02 Portfolio
TEDxUCLA
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My first public Immersive Tea Ritual was held at TEDxUCLA where I was assigned a downstairs classroom a considerable distance from the main auditorium.
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Forbidden from using the walls as support, I designed a free-standing architectural space that was easily assembled, required no hardware, and allowed diffused light to enter from all four directions.
One of the informing design principles for this (and subsequent designs) was wabi sabi–the Japanese aesthetic concept inspired by Zen Buddhism. wabi sabi embodies: 1) a sense of impermanence–than nothing we do will last forever; 2) incompleteness–that we are never completely finished with our work; and 3) imperfection–that we cannot ultimately create anything that is perfect.
The natural materials of the wall panels, table, tea-making implements, and floor mats added to the stillness that was generated and experienced inside.
At first, not a single person showed up. Then after lunch, a few showed up–and soon hundreds of eager participants wound through the hallway outside and disappeared into the shadows of the adjoining corridor. They never went back to the auditorium but instead waited patiently to experience–and participate in–a bowl of tea shared with strangers.
The line subsiding only after the event was officially ended.
TEDxVeniceBeach
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The Tea Ritual Space needed for TEDxVeniceBeach presented a different set of challenges.
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The space assigned to me was a single, oversized exterior lounge cushion in a high foot-traffic area next to the main entrance, lacking shade, walls, or even a surface for me to sit or a stove to heat water.
I transformed a splintery, discarded pallet found in an alley into a adjustable brewing/serving platform that was sturdy and safe while still embodying an overall organic-decay aesthetic. I mounted a single wood/metal, wabi sabi-esque door to create a boundary between the frenetic exterior and our more focused interior.
Every space at the table was filled with participants until the event organizers shut me down after dark.
SummitLA17
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Billed by the organizers as "Davos-meets-TED-talks-meets-Burning-Man"–the $4,000-per-ticket SummitLA17 demanded an exceptional guest experience. However, the room I was assigned was a) closet-sized, b) lacked proper ventilation, c) illuminated by fluorescent lights and d) contained only two solid walls (the remaining two were floor-to-ceiling public-facing windows).
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Rustic sliding Japanese summer doors refitted with deteriorating metallic scrap hid the windows and created a sense of intimacy. A primitive reclaimed timber turned into a low rustic table grounded the atmosphere. A single low-wattage primitive bulb brought calm to the ambience.
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Every tea session was packed beyond capacity. On the last day, an Amazonian shaman in face-paint and feather headdress requested a private session. I was happy to oblige.
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The organizers even used a photo of the space to advertise the next year’s event.
Portable Tea Experience Screen
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The portable and collapsable Portable Tea Experience Screen allows a tea facilitator to create an intentional space for cultivating presence and connection while serving tea regardless of surrounding noise or activity.
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The screen design was again informed by the principle of wabi sabi.
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Materials used in the construction are repurposed, reclaimed and recycled.
The screen fabric was from a deconstructed U.S. Army duffel bag. The supporting structure was fashioned from salvaged backpacking tent poles. The wood was sustainably harvested.
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The unit is easily disassembled and fits inside a satchel the size and weight of a one-person tent.
SummitLA18
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I took the Immersive Tea Experience Screen to the next Summit event–SummitLA18–where I used it for the new space I was given: this time outdoor faux-grass lawn shared with between group Pilates, yoga and aerobic classes.
I used both an elevated platform in a courtyard where hundreds of people gathered to do yoga and other wellness activities and a group "chill out" tent.
I served tea spontaneous/pop-up-style atop a circular platform normally used by motivationally-minded fitness trainers.
A single Portable Tea Experience Screen separated the presence and connection of the tea sessions from masses gathering for the next scheduled athletic event. I also used the screen to create a sense of intimacy in the otherwise cavernous and deafening tent.
At the end of the event I was once again joined by a shaman from the Amazon–this time in the form of a photo of Jeff Bezos on the top-line of the webpage advertising next year’s event.
Building a Dedicated Tea Space on the UC Davis Campus
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I was granted use of a studio space inside the Graduate Art Studio Building on the UC Davis campus with wabi sabi guiding every element of the design process.
I used retired 3’ x 8’ redwood apricot drying racks as wall panels on the guest-side of the space. One of the great unexpected boons from this material was that when it got to be a certain temperature, this very subtle sweetness of drying apricots would fill the space.
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I also de-constructed Japanese sliding doors–taking out the bamboo from these Meiji-era artifacts which had become rotten over decades–and replaced it with this very imperfect and decaying metalwork–tin, aluminum and iron–even old signs with graffiti. The goal was to remind participants that even when we're having this very mindful and connected Immersive Tea Experience–we are also surrounded in a world that's filled with many issues that we need to consider–and that we can’t completely remove ourselves from the imperfect outside world.
I fitted together odd-sized tatami mats collected from craigslist and garage sales. Then I turned repurposed produce baskets formally used for crop-harvesting in cushions storage bins.
The tea table is actually a reclaimed plank of Douglas Fir wood I dug out from the mud near homeless camp in Los Angeles. I had to remove scores of rusted nails and spent months both finishing it and searching for a way to remove the termites without using any harmful chemicals.
I used Qing Dynasty celadon wine cups to hold tea for guests.
Tea Studio #202
The first UC Davis dedicated campus tea space was officially completed at 4AM on January 1st, 2019.
The space was located in the Graduate MFA Studio Art Building on campus. One-year unlimited access was made available through the generosity of the Graduate Chairperson. As an acknowledgement of the physical location and building, I named the space Tea Studio #202.
In the immersive tea sessions that gathered during the rest of the academic year were variously made up of undergraduate and graduate students, professors, librarians, administrators, entrepreneurs, scholars, tea merchants, friends, cultural educators and campus visitors–along with an economist, yoga instructor, filmmaker, spiritual medium, best-selling author, Japanese tea master, on-duty police officer, College Dean and the University Chancellor.
The space was deconstructed on the last day of the 2018-19 academic year.
Bicycle-Mobile Tea Experience
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The fully-functioning Bicycle-Mobile Tea Experience premiered in the Design Department courtyard.
Components included:
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Three portable screens composed of repurposed tent poles, canvass salvaged from military duffel-bags and a retired Navy hammock
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Ground cloths made of reclaimed military tent canvas
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1970s-era West German denatured alcohol camping stove
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Folding Japanese bamboo and aluminum low round table
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Recycled canvas “chabu” tea runner
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Single-wheel cargo trailer
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Hemp-canvas crescent “zafu” cushions
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Reclaimed Taiwanese canvas mail-bag
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All components necessary for a group Immersive Tea Experience were collapsable and transportable via a single bicycle equipped with a trailer.
Tea-Centered Experiential Discussion Seminar
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Tea in the Anthropocene–course number GEO 298–was a two-unit discussion-based graduate seminar I co-created and led in the Spring 2019 quarter at the University of California, Davis. Matthew Licina was co-organizer of the endeavor.
The course met bi-weekly. Discussion topics included: climate chaos, big-data, death-phobic modern cultures, cell-phone addiction, slavery in the Congo, genocide, Radiohead, rare-earth conflict minerals and geologic time. Each class took place at a different location on campus.
Locations included: the campus arboretum, the basement of the veterinarian health sciences library, an abandoned outdoor lecture pavilion, a nursery garden gazebo and Tea Studio #202.
Tea in the Anthropocene Experience
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This image represents a "typical" class meeting in the course. This scene was from an outdoor meeting in a hidden and abandoned primitive amphitheater on UC Davis campus I nicknamed "the Fairy Circle" to add a sense of mystery to the discussion.
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Situated in a mini-forest between the Alumni Center and a block of Environmental Horticulture greenhouses, the discussion was temporarily interrupted by a flock of curious ducks.
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For the final exam, I gave the students no information to meet at Tea Studio #202 (which they had never been inside before)–and that the exam was pass/fail and anyone who was unsuccessful the first time could retake it without penalty. When all the students had gathered outside the door, I informed them that all that was required of them was to sit in complete silence for 60 minutes while sharing tea as a group.
Everybody passed.
Mobile Tea Experience Structure
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I received a $20,000 grant from The Green Initiative Fund to design and build an Immersive Tea Experience Lab (ITEL) that was self-contained, environmentally-friendly and non-permanent. The concept promoted ecological principles, cultural diversity and community engagement.
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Key characteristics of the project included:
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Collaboration with Global Tea Initiative, Arboretum and Student Tea Club.
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Demonstration of sustainability practices through everyday campus activities
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Mindfulness during ordinary interpersonal interaction
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Interdisciplinary teamwork sharing a multi-use space
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Mental wellness cultivation through community-minded practices
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The limited number of guests who took part in immersive tea experiences inside the initial ITEL prototype provided positive and encouraging feedback.
Site Analysis for a Campus Teahouse
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I collaborated with D-Lab on a feasibility study for the campus tea space I was in the process of designing. D-Lab is a UC Davis project that addresses energy, agriculture, environment and disability issues.
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The D-Lab team studied the three locations being considered for the tea space: Wyatt Deck in the Arboretum, the Carlson Library basement and Hunt Hall Courtyard.
The team carried out stakeholder, security, policy and SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analyses–and user surveys with Carlson Librarian staff.
The final report, “Feasibility Analysis for the Secure, Accessible, and Self-Sustaining Design,” was published online.
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Their recommendations included the use of cutting-edge practices currently utilized by museums to make the campus tea space accessible to a diversity of disabled participants–including impairment related to body, senses, mental health, intellect, brain injury and the autism spectrum.
03 CV
Public Tea Interventions
Tea in the Anthropocene Seminar, UC Davis Geography Department, Davis, CA, 2019
Public Immersive Tea Experience, Summit LA18, Los Angeles, CA, 2018
Public Immersive Tea Experience, MFA Studio Art Open Studios, Davis, 2018
Pop-Up Design Exhibit, Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, Davis, CA, 2018
Group Tea Ceremony, Blue Mind Symposium, Malibu, CA, 2017
Community Tea Ceremony, Summit LA17, Los Angeles, CA, 2017
Community Tea Ceremony, TEDxVeniceBeach, Venice, CA, 2017
Community Tea Ceremony, TEDxUCLA, Los Angeles, CA, 2017
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Selected Publications
“Activism in the Teaocene.” Kosmos Journal. Spring 2017.
“A Meeting of Three Species.” Global Tea Hut. August 2016.
“Pod Tune.” The Dark Mountain Project. 30 September 2015.
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Specialized Training
Global Tea Symposium, 2020
Global Tea Expo, 2019
Global Tea Symposium, 2019
Early Chinese Export Teapots, 2019
Global Tea Symposium, 2018
Gong Fu Tea Brewing, 2017
Liu Bao Black Tea, 2017
Appreciating Puerh, 2017
Ten Qualities of Fine Tea, 2017
Seven Genres of Tea, 2017
Taiwanese Oolong, 2017
Aged & Aging Tea, 2016
Appreciating Puerh Tea, 2016
Wuyi Cliff Tea, 2016
Re-Evaluating Tea Education, Global Tea Expo, 2016
Mindful Awareness Practices (MAPs), UCLA, 2015
Tea & Meditation Retreat, 2015
Tea Training Intensive, Global Tea Hut, Miao Li, Taiwan, 2013
The Way of Tea Introduction, 2013
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Fellowships and Grants
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The Green Initiative Fund Grant, UC Davis Office of Sustainability, 2019
Business Development Fellowship, UC Davis Mike and Renee Child Institute for Innovation, 2019
Place Making Initiative Grant, UC Davis Department of Design, 2019
Design MFA Travel Award, UC Davis Department of Design, 2018
Dean’s Distinguished Graduate Fellowship, UC Davis Graduate Studies, 2018
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Awards
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Catalyst Gold Medal
Japan Wildlife Film Festival Message Award
CINDY International Gold Medal
New York Film & Video Gold Medal
EarthVision Film Festival Trophy
San Jose Film Festival Joey
WorldFest Gold Special Jury Medal
TELLY Award
04 Collaborate
Called to host an Immersive Tea Experience curated at a significant event?
Inspired to build an Immersive Tea Space in your home or office?
Compelled by a day-long personal Immersive Tea Experience journey?
310.926.0092
Enormous gratitude for the follow people whose dedication and support made these projects possible:
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Annie Ahern, Shiva Ahmadi, Dragonfly Design Center, Glenda Drew, Jeffrey Farley, Erik Davis Fausak, Jordan Freid, Rob Ganger, Dr. Jenney Hall, Andrew Hargadon, Colin Hudon, Mark Kessler, Haven Kiers, Kurt Kornbluth, Marc Lancet, Matthew Licinia, Harry & Andrea Linde, Tom Maiorana, Rich Manzella, Tony Manzella, Chancellor Gary May, Melony Miners, Officer Eric M. Palmer, Johnathan Parris, Simon Sadler, Brett Snyder, Jessica Eve Rattner, Stephen Readmond, Matt Read, Jeff Dayu Shi, Michael Siminovitch, Liz Tang, and Jiayi Young.
Special thanks to Katharine Burnett, Founding Director of the UC Davis Global Tea Initiative, for her pioneering efforts.