Water Street Projects presents CHA CHA, a public immersive festival inspired by tea and its rituals, opening the weekend of Feb 1, 2025.
Through tea’s myriad forms — aroma, texture, color and flavor, visitors will experience innovative interpretations of how we gather to share tea and more. Over the course of four consecutive weekends, this event invites the public to experience the rich cultural heritage of tea through a multi-sensory environment created by an array of contributing artists and designers.
The free public festival will take place throughout the 40,000-square-foot Water Street Projects exhibition and community space located on the fifth and sixth floors of WSA, an iconic skyscraper and cultural hub in Lower Manhattan (161 Water Street). Conceived by Karen Wong, the cofounder of New Museum’s groundbreaking initiatives IdeasCity, NEW INC, and Onassis ONX, the presentation highlights five artists/designers commissioned to re-imagine a tea house inspired by five culturally significant Asian teas: pu-erh, oolong, hojicha, chai, and lotus tea. These installations will reflect the history, aesthetics, and ritualistic significance of tea, along with its social and cultural importance. Selected design teams include mother-daughter architectural pair Toshiko Mori and Tei Carpenter, landscape artists Studio Lily Kwong led by Shannon Lai, furniture and product designers Chen Chen and Kai Williams, architectural designer Areesha Khalid, and creative technologists Aaron Santiago and Michaela Ternasky-Holland. The first AAPI partner of renowned design consultancy Pentagram, Natasha Jen, and her team have designed the festival’s identity — marking a celebration timed to Lunar New Year and beyond.
Within each of the five tea house-inspired installations there will be complimentary tastings of each respective tea during the festival. The connective tissue between the tea houses will be more than a dozen culinary artists exploring and expanding upon Asian delectables — primarily in the dessert and beverage categories. Confirmed participants include 99 Bakery, Bé baby kitchen, Chicha San Chen, Fern and Aurora, Grand Tea Imports, Karachikababboiz, Kayanoya, Kiino Brooklyn, Kopitiam, Kora Bakery, Mas Budi, Patty Cruisey, Rana Jee’s, SALSWEE, s-u-m studio, The Baodega, and Yun Hai.
In addition, architectural designer CoCo Tin and researcher Ming Chen will create a TCM Apothecary installation to showcase Traditional Chinese Medicine in partnership with the Kamwo Meridian Herbs, a 50-year-old establishment in New York City’s Chinatown neighborhood. WSA will host CHA CHA Club, a pop-up restaurant celebrating Bruce Lee and the Year of the Snake.