Please note all orders are in US funds.
We are a creative house of artists and designers from diverse backgrounds. This includes traditional, contemporary and even academic studies in the field of Art.
www.houseofhotei.com
Founded by Dominic Chenier and Ashley Andrews, the “House of Hotei” is a creative house under which both solo and collaborative designs are executed resulting in some inspired pieces, fortunate experiments and delightful mistakes. This collaboration provides an aesthetic that embraces today’s modern approach of a mix of traditional and contemporary.
What is “Hotei”? Hotei: Hotei - God of Contentment and Happiness. The name itself is of Japanese origin. In Japan, Hotei is known in folklore as one of the Seven Lucky Gods.
In Chinese folklore, he is referred to as Budai or Pu-Tai, the Laughing Buddha. He is always portrayed as either smiling or laughing but always content, hence his nickname.
Traditionally, he is depicted as a fat, bald, jolly man with large ear lobes, wearing a robe. Sometimes, he is shown to be wearing or otherwise carrying prayer beads. He is often depicted entertaining or being followed by adoring children. His figure appears throughout Chinese culture as a representation of both joy and contentment. He carries his few possessions in a cloth sack, being poor but content.
The ideology he represents could not be more fitting for what we aspire to achieve and inspire.
Sounds almost French? It does, doesn’t it?
Well, it is also a play on the French words “Haut thé” and the literal translation commonly known in English as “high Tea”. High tea has much more to do with the working class than it does with elite social gatherings for “Afternoon tea”, also referred as low tea.
Traditionally, high tea was a meal for the working class served on high tables after five o’clock following the end of a long workday. Included with tea would be an assortment of hearty comfort meals and baked goods.
We want our pieces to reflect the same personal self-gratifying heartwarming experience in both its creation and visual consumption.
We hope that you will find as much contentment and happiness in our designs as we have in creating them.
