The art of gesture

Why Ikane develops preparation objects

Ikane was born from real practice.

Before becoming a shop, Ikane is led by artists. Ink sticks, traditional Gong Fu tea preparation, traced incense these are gestures we already practice.

Over time, one conclusion became clear: quality depends on the material and temporal conditions in which work begins.

Preparation objects do not create the artwork. They create its framework.

Preparation is not delay. Preparation is structure.

Contents

Ink Stick: tradition, control and transmission

The ink stick belongs to one of the oldest technical systems still used in artistic practice.

Emerging in China over two thousand years ago, it forms part of the “Four Treasures”: brush, paper, ink and stone.

This is not exotic heritage. It is a tool that survived because it provides control that industrial liquid ink does not.

A technical tradition, not decoration

In scholar studios, ink was never ready-made. It had to be prepared before every session.

This was not aesthetic ritual. It was technical necessity:

• controlling density,
• adapting tone to paper,
• stabilizing the hand before the stroke.

Tradition here means transmission of an effective system.

Why did it endure?

• Exceptional stability: a stick can last decades.
• Total precision: density fully adjustable.
• Material economy.
• Autonomy from fixed industrial formulas.

Its longevity is functional, not romantic.

The relationship to gesture

Grinding ink imposes a slow circular rhythm.

This rhythm alters posture. It slows breathing. It establishes continuity before the brush touches paper.

Work does not begin with production. It begins with preparation.

Why Ikane places it first

Because producing your own material transforms the working relationship.

Instead of consuming a ready tool, you participate in its making.

This shift changes both stroke quality and attention quality.

Tradition is not frozen heritage. It is technique that endured because it remains superior.

Gong Fu Tea: progressive extraction and attention threshold

Gong Fu Cha is not decorative ceremony.

It is an extraction method developed in China to reveal tea leaves progressively and with control.

“Gong Fu” means skilled effort. It is not a recipe. It is a method.

Why multiple infusions?

Tea leaves contain different aromatic compounds released at different speeds:

• Volatile floral aromas first.
• Amino acids and sweetness second.
• Tannins and heavier structures later.

A long infusion extracts everything at once. Short infusions allow progressive material reading.

Why discard the first rinse?

The first quick infusion is not consumed.

It serves to:

• Rehydrate and open rolled leaves.
• Remove production dust.
• Warm the vessel to stabilize extraction.

This is technical, not symbolic.

How many infusions?

• Green tea: 3–5.
• Oolong: 5–8.
• Pu-erh: up to 10+.
• Black tea: 3–4.

Why Ikane integrates it into artistic work

Gong Fu structures time before creation.

Between infusions there is enforced waiting. This micro-interval creates rhythm.

Work begins progressively, not abruptly.

Concrete result

• More stable attention.
• Clear transition into studio mindset.
• Sustained rhythm during practice.

Tea here is an entry method for the creation.

Historical origin: the incense clock

During the Song dynasty (10th–13th century), scholar elites used devices known as “incense clocks.”

Powder was arranged in calibrated patterns. Combustion measured time without mechanical systems.

It was silent. No gears. No bells. Time was measured through gradual disappearance.

Powder composition

Traditional incense is not simple fragrance. It is composed of:

• aromatic woods (sandalwood, agarwood),
• natural resins,
• plant-based binders.

Granularity affects burning speed. Finer powder produces more regular progression.

Relevance for contemporary artists

Digital tools measure time numerically. Incense measures time through transformation.

The line shortens. Combustion is visible. Progression is perceptible.

Duration becomes material rather than abstract.

This shift alters the relationship to effort.

You no longer endure a countdown. You accompany combustion.

Gradual disappearance produces a form of focus distinct from digital urgency.

Conclusion: a system, not an atmosphere

We do not offer a collection of slow objects.

We build a coherent preparation system:

• The ink stick structures material.
• Gong Fu tea structures the mental threshold.
• Traced incense structures duration.

Three axes. Three levers. One objective: stabilize practice.

Why this is necessary

Contemporary work is fragmented. Interrupted. Timed by screens.

Slow art is not nostalgic aesthetics. It is a functional response to acceleration.

Concrete impact

• Less dispersion.
• Clear beginning.
• Defined ending.
• More precise gesture.

Quality does not come only from talent. It comes from conditions.

Preparation protects the work.

Ambition

Ikane structures a European approach to slow art. Not imitation. Rigorous adaptation of one principle: prepare before acting.

We do not slow down for aesthetics. We stabilize to produce better.