Designing a Chinese herbal tea pop-up shop that promotes Cantonese’s traditional Leung-cha drinking culture.

Instructor: Mark Smith
Year: Fall 2020

Ah-Ma Herbal Tea (阿嬷凉茶铺) incorporates cultural elements from the old T.V series Seventy-Two Tenants (2008) and Scavengers’ Paradise (2005), Eastern medicine packaging, artifacts, and everyday life items from the mid-twentieth century in Guangdong, China. Many traditional herbal tea shops have gradually disappeared in China, and fewer shops contain Guangdong characteristics (Eight Immortals table, big gourd, a big bowl of tea). Less known local brands struggle to survive and are replaced by larger corporations, like milk tea brands and tea beverage brands. Leung-cha is a unique, bittersweet drink made from traditional medicinal herbs that provide a soothing and comforting healing effect. This project aims to protect and bring back the disappearing Leung-cha drinking culture by incorporating contemporary style and traditional Chinese icons to catch young audiences’ eyes.

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