Tropical Ikebana, ushering in the summer

This past weekend, the annual spring ikebana exhibition was held with over 250 people participating over the four day event. Fourteen different schools of ikebana participated in the exhibition, including Ikenobo, Sogetsu, and my school, Ohara. It is always interesting to see what materials other schools of ikebana use and how they use them in arrangements. I enjoy looking at other arrangements and the beauty that is created with different flowers, leaves, and branches. It never fails to inspire me in my own study and pursuit of ikebana and makes me want to share the joy of ikebana with others.

A couple of weeks ago while I was buying some flowers for a class that I was teaching, I spotted an interesting plant in the window of the flower shop -- Aeonium artropurpureum. Usually, this material is rather small, but these plants had been growing for a while and had matured into very nice, long, and unusual stalks. I knew that I wanted to use them for the spring exhibition, so I snapped them up before someone else had the same idea!

Looking at the lines of the material, I decided that I wanted to do a one-row form arrangement to show off the interesting lines and shape of the Aeonium. But, the Aeonium was quite large, so I would have to think about what type of container or containers I would use. Next, I had to decide what other materials I could use to show off this beauty. The Aeonium looked a little tropical and other-worldly to me, so I decided that I needed to find other tropical plants and flowers to make a cohesive, yet interesting, arrangement.

And the result:




One-row form
materials: Aeonium artropurpureum, Pincushion (2 varieties), Guzumania (2 varieties),
Dracaena "Song of India", Dracaena "Song of Jamaica"



 I had the perfect spot in the corner with a large base-box.
The view from the right side.

The view from the left side.

Tropical Ikebana to usher in the summer.

Several friends said that the materials looked like they came from a Ghibli movie. I think the Aeonium definitely look like they belong in a Ghibli movie.

The exhibition was only four days long. I always feel so bad for the flowers that they can only be appreciated for such a short time. If the arrangement is small, I can enjoy it at home after the exhibition ends, but this one was too big to do that. The box the arrangement sits on is about a meter across, so that can give you a small idea of how large the arrangement was.

A friend of mine has a small hanko shop, so I asked him if he would like for me to do a small arrangement for his window. I had done one for the new year in 2012 and 2011 for him. He was more than happy for me to do something for him again.

One-row form
materials: Guzumania, Dracaena "Song of Jamaica", Orchid "Calipso Pink"

A punch of color in the shop window.
I had bought the orchids for the arrangement for the exhibition, but decided against using them.
I'm glad they had a chance to show off their beauty to the public.

I'm glad I was able to use the materials again. And hopefully, they will last for a while and give the people walking by the shop something beautiful to look at.

Feel free to leave a comment on what you think of the arrangement. Do you think it looks like the materials could be found in a Ghibli movie?

Short Ikebana Picture Video How-To

I've been messing around with trying to make an ikebana video lately.

Here are my first two attempts. I took a series of photos and made a little mini-movie on how to make two different kinds of arrangements. They don't go into a lot of detail, because I wasn't sure I could even do it -- I am not the most tech savvy! I'm going to actually try and take a video of me doing and explaining an arrangement next, so be on the lookout for that. Until then, enjoy these two short videos.

Cherry Blossoms 2012

The cherry blossoms finally came into bloom last week. On Saturday, the sky was a brilliant blue and it seemed the pink trees had blossomed over night. I was busy that day and couldn't get out to take some pictures. So on Sunday morning, I woke up bright and early and headed out to take enjoy the beauty of the day and the beauty of the trees. It was a little hazy, but I did manage to get a few shots. And I'm lucky I did. Why? Because the rain and cool weather came putting a stop to all of the cherry blossom fun. By the end of the week, most of the blossoms had been beaten off the trees by the rain. It seems like that happens every year. I guess that is the spring weather for you. The frailty of the flowers make you appreciate them so much more. I look forward to their fleeting beauty each year, and it never disappoints. So until next year, I'll just enjoy the pictures I have.



cherry trees along the bank of the Kitakami river



it looks like cotton candy

yes, that is snow on the mountains in the background

 

a walking path under the trees

i love the gray bark of the cherry tree



pink and blue



The Big and Small of Ikebana

I was planning on getting this post up earlier in the day, but it was a beautiful day here -- the first real day of spring this year. It had been cold and rainy all last week. But this morning when I woke up, the sky was a brilliant blue without a cloud in the sky. I had to go out in the morning, and I was surprised to see the cherry blossom trees in full bloom! I guess they thought it was time for spring to show herself, too. I had the windows and door open all day, and it was wonderful! I hope that I can get out tomorrow and get some pictures to share with you later.

On to the ikebana . . .

This time, I wanted to share some pictures of Moribana.

Moribana was originated by the First Headmaster, Unshin Ohara. It's an ikebana where the materials are arranged as if they are piled up in a low, flat container with a large surface of the water showing. Many other schools of ikebana also have a Moribana style, but it was originated in the Ohara School of Ikebana.

The most basic style in Moribana is the Upright Style. It expresses the beauty of materials that stand upright. The three principal stems are arranged to form a scalene triangle with all other materials acting as filler stems.

Five stems of Calla lily are used as the subject and secondary material. The tallest stem in the back is the main stem of the arrangement, the subject, with the stem angled out to the left being the secondary stem. These two form the first two points of the scalene triangle. The other three stems of Calla lily are arranged to give the group a sense of movement and interest.

Because the lilies have no green leaves, three stems of Solidaster are used to fill in the base of the group and to help cover the kenzan.

Next, three Tulips are added as the mid-filler. One is short in the front, one is tall in the middle, and one more is short in the back. The three stems form a mountain shape when viewed from the side.

Last, five stems of Sweet Pea are used as the object group with a few fronds of Leather Leaf mixed into the group. The Sweet Pea angled out to the right is the third stem that forms the last point of the scalene triangle.

This picture taken vertically helps to show off the beautiful lines of the Calla lily and the beauty of the Upright Style.

After doing this arrangement, I did one in a much smaller container, also using five materials.

Three leaves of New Zealand Flax, three stems of Anemone, three blooms of Alstroemeria, three stems of Stock, and Asparagus myriocladus is used throughout to connect all the materials.

A close-up of the flowers.

And how small is this arrangement? It's hard to tell without a point of reference.

This small. Yes, that is a regular pen in front of the container -- small.

And there you have it.

The big and small of ikebana.

Flower & Space, Hiroki Ohara Exhibition

Hiroki Ohara, the headmaster of the Ohara School of Ikebana, held his first solo exhibition at the Nihon Bashi Takashimaya Department Store in Tokyo from March 30 to April 4. According to the Ohara School of Ikebana's home page, over 45,000 people came to the exhibition over the 5 day period. It was a wonderful exhibition full of beautiful flowers, many of which I had never seen before, beautiful containers, beautiful zoukei sculptures, and the perfect lighting to set it all off. A friend and I spent well over an hour looking at everything -- we actually went through twice just to make sure we saw everything thoroughly. I was glad I was able to attend the exhibition and look forward to his next one.

Here are a few pictures from the exhibition that I really liked. (The picture quality is not the best because I took them with my cell phone's camera!)

I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed his show.

The first thing you saw upon entering the exhibition space.

A large Bunjin style arrangement -- it was almost as tall as I was!

Another Bunjin style arrangement full of flowers and plants that I had never seen before.

A cute arrangement made with single stems of different flowers and plants.

A large scale natural landscape -- beautiful!

Another view of the large scale natural landscape.

I don't know what these are, if they are natural or something that was made by hand.
They reminded me of something from a Gibli movie.

More of the "Gibli" piece.

My favorite! Drift wood combined with real pine tree branches.

It looked so old yet so modern.

The stainless steel container made the ancient looking tree formation look new and modern.
I wish I had something like this in my apartment to look at every day.
Beautiful!

Hanakanade -- a new style conceived by the headmaster.

Another example of Hanakanade using an unusual container and unusual materials.

It was a beautiful show that affirmed my passion for ikebana. Hiroki Ohara's arrangements were beautiful to look at inspiring in their imaginative use of flowers, plants, and materials. A wonderful first time exhibition that I would call a great success!