25 artists reimagine the teapot at Milan Design Week 2025

I’ve always been fascinated by the ritual of the tea ceremony, especially in Japan, Korea and China,’ says Patricia Urquiola. ‘It is a form of meditation. It’s choosing to dedicate time for yourself. It is the physical comfort of the warmth of the cup and the tea, with the mental comfort of the experience.’

Urquiola is one of 25 artists, designers and architects commissioned by Loewe for Milan Design Week 2025, which sees the cross-cultural and ritualistic nature of tea considered by designers including David Chipperfield, Dan MacCarthy, Takayuki Sakiyama, Rose Wylie, Jane Yang-D’Haene, Akio Niisato, Shozo Michikawa and Lu Bin.

The teapot, holding a unique place at the intersection of culture, history and ritual, becomes intertwined with personal meditations by the artists and designers when considering the significance of the tea ceremony. Once elevated to become a figure of design, the teapot both removes and reinforces its comfortable functionality. Loewe’s enlisted creatives, reflecting on its role in the family and community, have marked this contrast in teapots created in traditional mediums, such as porcelain and ceramic, complete with eclectic twists on material and form, from plays on proportion to offbeat silhouettes and subverted design tweaks.

For Urquiola, the physical form a teapot inspires is as significant as the philosophical role of tea. She muses upon its introduction to ancient China, followed later by its journey to Japan, in a design that considers the tea ceremony’s integral role in social standing. ‘[I’m fascinated by] how an object and a gesture can create an experience that goes beyond function,’ she says. ‘The teapot’s form is designed not only to hold and pour tea, but to guide the hands, control the flow and shape the rhythm of the moment. Its weight, texture and temperature become part of the ritual, engaging the senses in a way that feels both intimate and intentional. Simple actions – pouring water, holding a bowl, taking a sip – become gestures of presence. There is a beauty in this culture of attention, the way each movement is deliberate, each object carefully chosen.’

It is a sensual physicality that Urquiola draws on with her design, which blurs the lines between form and function, the silhouette spilling over a teapot’s classic parameters to create a more abstract form. Named ‘Ardilla’ (Spanish for squirrel), it embodies the duality of the animal, capturing both its playfulness and its purpose.

‘In designing this teapot, I wanted to capture that duality: the energy of movement and the sense of tenderness and gathering that the squirrel evokes,’ Urquiola adds. ‘There is something beautiful in the way the squirrel collects and holds, whether it’s storing food for the future or pausing to observe the world around it. I sought to reflect this in the teapot’s form: a vessel that holds warmth, inviting a moment of pause. The design plays with organic curves and tactile elements, creating an object that feels natural in the hands. The tail, with its characteristic curve, becomes both a sculptural detail and a functional element.’

Other designs take their cue from tradition, with Simone Fattal and David Chipperfield choosing to uphold the teapot’s historical elements. For Fattal, the pull is also a personal one, a nod to the reassurance of a recurring tea ceremony. ‘I started having tea every day a few months before the civil war in Lebanon started, in the spring of 1975,’ she says. ‘I had just moved to the first apartment I owned, and every afternoon saw me on the balcony with my tray and teapot.’

It was a habit that continued through exile, travel and displacement. ‘This ritual became the anchor of the day, helping [me] to go through all the difficulties,’ she adds. ‘This pause – the fact that one took time to sit and ponder and enjoy the wonderful taste of tea – became the support I needed for what was going on. Tea in the Arab world is extremely important. Many people travel with their own mix of teas and when they are in a café, they order hot water, paying for a tea but then using their own.’

Fattal was inspired to create her teapot in porcelain, opting for a simple design with
a woven leather handle. ‘I see so many artists using treasures of imagination to create all kinds of extravagant shapes and forms for teapots. But I chose to keep it simple. And to keep its shape close to the traditional. I find that more conducive to the joy of using it for this convivial moment.’

David Chipperfield agrees, drawing on his long relationship with Japan for a celebration of the elements that are so integral to its culture. ‘The tea ceremony is a representation of the importance of ritual and of doing simple things with care and attention,’ he notes, choosing to work with Galician ceramic artist Paula Ojea and jewellers Noroeste Obradoiro in bringing his design to life. ‘At a time when innovation seems to be overvalued, I was interested in making something predictable, something that looks like a teapot. In sketching its form, I also looked for inspiration among the extensive collection of ceramic objects that I have accumulated over the years.’

‘Loewe Teapots’ is on show from 7-13 April during Milan Design Week 2025, alongside a selection of exclusive homewares produced by Loewe for Salone, at Palazzo Citterio, Via Brera 12, palazzocitterio.org, loewe.com, patriciaurquiola.com

This article appears in the May 2025 issue of Wallpaper*, available in print on newsstands from 3 April, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today