A lack of understanding of the provenance of objects and materials around us leads to our current severed relationship with the environment, perpetuating the cognitive divide between nature and human.

To beter reintegrate ourselves to the local environment, we need to find a relationship with materials and to fully utilize their innate thermal, structural, and visual qualities. One way is to build with materials that we can instinctively understand and find affect, resulting in a desire to care for and live together with the material.

I will call this a charismatic material.

This project proposes a plan for a wooden Japanese teahouse using a thought process in alignment with charismatic materials, using recent forestry ideas and building processes that can reform the relationship between the user, designer, forester, and the trees.

People Involved: No co-authors. The following people gave advice on the project: David Kong, Director of Community Biotechnology Initiative MIT Media Lab, USA. Abby Spinak, Lecturer in Urban Planning and Design at Harvard GSD, USA.