Every Flower Has a Face

It's fascinating how a detail in a message can stick out and get a life of it's own. It reminds me that communication is never just about a message being sent out, but also very much about what's there from before in the person receiving the message. Have a look at this Ohara School lesson by Japan based teacher Stephen Coler and see how you like it.

I love the elegance of this arrangement and the way Stephen Coler creates depth and space by being careful about where and how he places the stems. Still what catches my mind the most is the short comment "Every flower has a face". I remember my teacher used to say that when I started studying ikebana. Once again this video reminds me about the importance of studying and communicating with the materials to understand them and make efficient use of them.

There are a lot of different styles of ikebana. Learning from other schools than the one you're studying with can be both enriching and confusing. Since all schools relates to old tradition and philosophy there are many similarities. Following the Sogetsu School I feel I understand the Sogetsu teachings from a different angel when I get a glimpse into how ikebana is taught in other schools.

To see more of Stephen Coler's ikebana you can visit his blog named Hanamai, the ikebana blog.

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