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An evening with Yoshitaka Kotani, maker of kikusumi in Nosé, Osaka. In chanoyu, the Japanese way of tea, charcoal has never served merely as fuel for heating water. It is laid in full view of the guests, and its form, its arrangement, and its gradual ignition are regarded as part of the aesthetic experience of the gathering. Kikusumi (菊炭), or chrysanthemum charcoal, is the fullest expression of this tradition: a material raised to the level of a work of art. Named for the fine, evenly spaced fissures that radiate from its center like the petals of a chrysanthemum, it has been esteemed by tea practitioners since the time of Sen no Rikyu (1522–1591).

Nosé, in the forested hills north of Osaka, has long been a principal source of kikusumi, and the techniques of its production have been passed down there across generations. Yoshitaka Kotani took up the work from his father, who devoted his later years to making charcoal for chanoyu. He now directs the Nosé Satoyama Creators, which produces kikusumi and cares for the surrounding woodland on which it depends.

Kikusumi has seldom been presented outside Japan. Mr. Kotani’s brief visit to New York this November offers an occasion to introduce it to an American audience.

In an illustrated lecture, Mr. Kotani describes the full process of production: the harvesting of kunugi oak (Quercus acutissima) in winter, on a rotation of seven to eight years that allows the trees to regenerate; the firing of an earthen kiln over about two weeks, regulated by the color of its smoke; and the criteria by which the finished charcoal is judged, among them the thinness of the bark, the regularity of the fissures, its fragrance in burning, and the fine white ash it leaves. Samples will be available for examination.

The lecture is followed by a demonstration of sumi-demae, the formal procedure for laying charcoal, performed in a brazier by Yoshitsugu Nagano, and by a period for questions. Mr. Kotani speaks in Japanese, with English interpretation throughout.

• What you will experience+
  • An illustrated lecture by Yoshitaka Kotani, kikusumi maker of Nosé, Osaka, with English interpretation
  • Examination of kikusumi samples
  • A demonstration of sumi-demae by Yoshitsugu Nagano
  • Questions and discussion

The content and order of the program are subject to change.