By Bemis Center artist-in-residence Sangwoo Yoo
Every year during the Christmas season, approximately 40 million trees are harvested in the United States and the United Kingdom alone. These trees are typically grown for only 7 to 10 years before being cut down, despite their natural lifespan averaging around 400 years. Consumed and discarded after merely two months of festive decoration, this practice highlights a profoundly unsustainable cycle.
Responding to this unsustainable cycle, this public event involves collecting Christmas trees discarded after the season and repurposing them into tea bags. The trees used in this project were personally gathered by the artist from the streets of Chicago, where he currently resides. The needles from these trees are then refined and brewed into tea, which is shared and consumed with local residents. Through this ritualistic process, individuals internalize the memories embodied by the material. As participants steep and drink the tea together, each private experience is amplified, transforming into a collective memory.
While savoring the tea, participants are invited to record words—memories, emotions, or associations evoked during the tasting—on prepared paper tags. This concept was inspired by the traditional Korean Buddhist practice of the Lotus Lantern Festival (연등회, Yeondeunghoe), in which individuals write their personal wishes or prayers on paper tags and attach them to lanterns, illuminating them symbolically as collective aspirations. In a similar manner, the collected tags, interwoven with the used tea bags, will be suspended in the exhibition space, forming a collective tapestry of individual memories. In this way, each visitor’s personal narrative merges into the artwork, actively shaping its evolving meaning.
Planned Activities:
Tea Tasting:
- Two types of cold-brewed tea will be prepared in advance.
- Each tea will be made using a different method and provided in self-serve beverage dispensers.
- Informational signage will explain the origin of the trees and the brewing process.
Reflection Tags:
- Paper tags and pens will be provided.
- While tasting the tea, participants will be invited to write down words—memories, emotions, or imagery that arise during the experience.
- The collected tags will be gathered at the end of the event and used in the project’s subsequent stages.
Participation and Documentation:
- The event will be documented on video.
- I will be present to share background about the project and answer any questions.