Author: Shuzhen Kong (Ellen)

Kong Shuzhen (孔淑贞), English name Ellen Kong, is a Shanghai-based classical painter and tea expert. She graduated from Shanghai Normal University, with an MA in Art, observing the Chinese tradition of interweaving the appreciation of tea with the classical arts including the guqin, poetry, and flower arrangement. A frequent national commentator on tea connoisseurship, including Ted talks, Ellen currently conducts the tea event programme for the Chinese luxury brand SHANGXIA.

A brick of compressed tea. The centre of it has been embossed with the image of a dragon.

A Tea Brick from Fuzhou

Of all the tea bricks at MAA, only one is embossed with the image of a dragon. What are the multiple meanings of this important Chinese symbol in this context, and what is its relationship to the tea brick?

Shuzhen Kong (Ellen)

30 May 2023

An oval brick of tea with a loose friable surface.

A Tea Brick Destined for Tibet

Ever tried to guess the flavour of tea just from looking at leaves or bricks, and without brewing them? Or even just from photographs of them? Come explore one example from the collections at MAA with me.

Shuzhen Kong (Ellen)

6 December 2022

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