Andamiro Gwittae Museum Special Exhibition: Masterpieces and Teatime

At the Andamiro Gwittae Museum, the gleaming teapots and teacups captured in famous paintings — and the warm breath of life held within them — are introduced. At the end of the 15th century, the sea routes of the Age of Discovery opened in search of spices became a passage carrying to Europe not only the mysterious tea leaves of the East but also the aesthetics of the refined vessels that held them. Painters of the time began to set down on canvas, in dazzling color, the lively warmth flowing inside a teacup and the happy moments of teatime. This exhibition goes beyond the scenes on those canvases, offering the special experience of standing before the actual teapots and cups the figures in the paintings held. From the mysterious warmth conveyed by William McGregor Paxton's 'Tea Leaves' to the ornate silver teapot that appears in Mary Cassatt's 'The Tea', we invite you to encounter, with real immediacy, the ease of a cup of tea as the figures in these paintings felt it.