Congrats LA!

Members of the Sogetsu Los Angeles branch celebrates their 25th anniversary this year. Earlier this month I had the pleasure of joining the festivities at their anniversary luncheon at Omni Hotel. It was great to be part of such a large gathering of ikebana enthusiasts. And I was so happy to finally get to see an ikebana live demo with their special guest Tetsunori Kawana. Especially since I have been a few days too early or too late to attend his demonstrations in New York at earlier occasions.

Kawana Sensei made at least ten large arrangements in vases with different kinds of branches and flowers before the finally; a Flo'Work arrangement with Cherry blossoms taking up most of the stage. I'm posting two photos of the Flo'Work arrangement so that you can get an idea of the working process. The first photo is of the structure of branches working as a skeleton for the different kinds of branches and flowers that were added to form the finished arrangement, shown in the second photo. Some of the branches were fixed to the structure with an electric drill, others were just sticked into the arrangement. Pretty impressive. I actually like the look of the bare structure even more than the finished work.

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Easter Greetings

Reshaping plant materials.

Easter ikebana, pine branch and Daffodils.

The spring storms blowing the winter away caused a large pine branch to fall to the ground outside the ikebana studio. Pine symbolizes longevity or eternal life. Daffodils in Christian tradition symbolize resurrection. Beeing a bulb flower returning each spring, it reminds us that life and beauty is capable of following the harshest winter or tribulations.

Happy Easter!

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Scandinavian Ceramics

Scandinavian and Japanese design have much in common. The clean lines and the idea that the simplistic and harmonious is what is beautiful. The emphasis on thoughtful design and workmanship in everyday objects. I like to use Scandianvian midcentury ceramics as containers for ikebana arrangements. It enables me to add something from my own culture and still keep a classical and elegant look. It's true that you can use any container from any culture, but the result must always be harmonious.

Swedish midcentury ceramics, Rörstrand Studio,

Gunnar Nylund and Carl Harry Stålhane.

In the early 1900s European ceramicists started experimenting with stoneware using Japanese techniques. Uneven surfaces and running glazes were new and exotic. Japanese ceramics such as 16th century raku tea wares, wood fired pots from Shigaraki and Bizen and Jomon figures, could be studied up close at the world exhibitions in Paris.

Danish midcentury ceramics,

Saxbo and Palshus.

In Scandinavia ceramicists started working individually and in smaller workshops in the 1940's. The Japanese traditions and the new French 'art de feu' ceramics had a great impact on Danish and Swedish ceramics. The Swedish pioneer Gunnar Nylund learned the new techniques in Denmark before introducing stoneware at the Swedish Rörstrand porcelain factory. In Sweden elegant stoneware was created by now famous ceramicists like Wilhelm Kåge, Carl Harry Stålhane and Stig Lindberg. Today as Danish and Swedish ceramics and porcelain from the Scandinavian design era is becoming increasingly popular in Japan, the circle is closed and influences are going in both directions.

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Stones and Sand

Morimono is usually ikebana arrangements with fruits and vegetables together with plant materials. The literally meaning is "things piled up", like moribana means "flowers piled up". A morimono arrangement can also be made with other natural materials, such as in these arrangements with stones. They can be made with nothing but stones and sand or with additional moss and branches, whichever one prefers.

The sand is raked with a fork in patterns, resembling the raked gravel in a Zen buddhist rock garden. That reference is quite obvious, and the goal is that the arrangement should have a floating feeling and a calming effect on the viewer.

When using stones instead of plant materials it is the stones you need to examine, pretty much the same way as you do with the flowers when you're using them as the main material. What is the character of the stone? What movements and energies can you find in it? What happens if you turn it up side down? The most important thing is that the stones are similar in colour, shape and texture, and that they are placed so that there is a communication between them. As you can see in these two arrangements, the size of the stones corresponds with the main branches in a basic ikebana arrangement so that there is one Shin stone, one Soe stone and finally one Hikae stone.

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An Afternoon in Little Tokyo

Did you know that Los Angeles has a large Japanese community? Downtown LA you'll find Little Tokyo, one of only three official Japan towns in the US. I had a look around one afternoon on my LA trip last week, hunting for ikebana related items.

It was a charming experience strolling the historic district, but I must say the shops were somewhat disappointing. I probably didn't find the right places until I stumbled across Rafu Bussan, a store filled with Japanese china and giftware.

So I finally got what I was looking for. I came out of the store with a white winter ikebana container, a nice bamboo dai and a large kenzan especially made for fixing larger branches. I even got a Japanese lucky cat gift from the nice people in the store.

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Haran, Haran, Haran

The basics of a classical Haran ikebana.

My ikebana teacher loves to quote the expression "Everything starts and ends with Haran" - meaning Haran, or Aspidistra leaves, is the most important material in ikebana. In classical ikebana it is often used as isshu-ike, one material only arrangement, with 7-10 leaves shaped into artistic curves according to detailed rules. The arrangement should show both the sunny (front) side and the shadow (back) side of the leaves, as well as the side view. The basics is the triangular shape with three lines put together to form a balanced and harmonious design. I actually find this basic skeletal quite appealing. Today when we are often looking for simplicity and calmness we might not need the rest of the leaves that makes the arrangement more complex and crowded.

Classical Haran ikebana the Sogetsu way.

In the Sogetsu School classical ikebana is taught as an insight to traditions giving a deeper understanding of the meaning of ikebana. Not going to much into the strict rules of a traditional ikebana arrangement, but rather imitating the style to get a feeling of what it's all about. Creating an arrangement like this is actually quite demanding and takes a lot of practice if you should do it according to all the rules. An obvious mistake in my attempt is that the base is not clean enough. It should be one clear and thin line as in the first picture. To manage this you need to have both large and smaller leaves so that you can get the right size without having to cut the long stem. Haran is also much used in modern, abstract ikebana. This of course is much less time consuming, and shows the leaves from a totally different point of view.

Modern Haran ikebana (mass and lines).

Aspidistra leaves and Stocks.

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Hanami Day Exhibition

"In the eye of the storm".

Siberian dogwood, white Cherry blossoms, Lisianthus.

Ohara School Madoka container.

Without kenzan, straight and curved lines, focus on water.

Hanami Day March 27th 2011 at Historical Museum in Oslo, Norway.

Theme: Pity, compassion, and human kindness.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ... Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." (Matthew 5:4,7)

"Storm".

Plastic mesh, Dried and fresh Aspidistra leaves, Ornithogalum.

Mass and curved lines, untraditional and fresh materials,

dried materials.

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Materials, Creativity and Nationality

“Americans are excellent at putting together combinations of color and material that Japanese people would never think of", says grandmaster of Sogetsu ikebana Yokou Kitajima. Since moving from Japan to the US in the 1970s he's been teaching ikebana to Americans and should know from experience what he is talking about. You can read the whole interview with Yokou Kitajima on the Discover Nikkei website, a project that is documenting and sharing the life of Japanese people living outside of Japan.

Yokou Kitajima says he's impressed with his students ideas that he himself, being a Japanese, would not be able to come up with. "I believe these are not qualities that can be taught, but an ability that they possess naturally", he continues. He also relates the differences to the amount of flowers and plant materials that are available in different parts of the world. In California, where Mr. Kitajima lives, there is a wide range of materials available that allows for other opportunities than in Japan. He sees the differences in national consciousness and climate as an enrichment to the world of Sogetsu ikebana: “When I show it [a piece created in America] to a person from Japan, I want them to think, “Ah, indeed, American Sōgetsu is different.” I want it to be a piece with even more freedom of creativity—not just something big, but a piece of work that would really intrigue them.”

As a person living in Norway I find Mr. Kitajima's reflections on ikebana materials and national consciousness quite interesting. In California you can cut impressive flowers, like Bird of paradise flowers, in your back yard. In Norway it's much more limited what you can grow outdoors. The cold season with frozen ground and bare branches on the trees lasts for at least one-third of the year - I'm sure this also has an impact on people living here.

When I look at the expression of Norwegian ikebana arrangements compared to creations by ikebanists from further south in Europe and other parts of the world, the importance of our culture and natural surroundings becomes quite obvious. In Norway we are using less green materials and flowers. As a result the ikebana arrangements are less decorative and maybe more fragile and cut to the bone. To me celebrating the differences becomes part of being "here and now" and accepting things as they are rather than pretending to be somewhere or someone else. I will definitely keep thinking about the meaning of nationality and surroundings as I continue my ikebana work.

I came across the Discover Nikkei website preparing for a trip to Los Angeles in a couple of weeks. I would be happy to hear from you if you now of any must do's in the area. On the website there are several other interesting articles on Japanese culture that you might want to read, including a portrait interview with Haruko Takeichi, also a high ranking Sogetsu ikebana master in Los Angeles.

Photo of Yokou Kitajima borrowed from Sogetsu Los Angeles Branch.

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Preparing for an Exhibition

This years Hana mai day (Cherry blossom day) at The Historical Museum in Oslo will be a special day in solidarity with the people of Japan. I was invited to make to ikebana arrangements so I spent the evening preparing and planning. I decided to go for a hana dome arrangement with Cherry blossom and a boat arrangement reflecting the violent forces of the sea.

My fellow ikebanist in Washington DC, Keith Stanley, has been working a lot with hana dome lately. He has also posted some information and pictures on the internet, so I wanted to try it out. Hana dome basically means flower fixture, and is a visable structure of any kind to help fix the flowers without kenzan or other fastening techniques.

These photos are of a work in progress, to illustrate the process of preparing for an exhibition. You'll first have to find a theme and an idea for the arrangements. Next you'll have to try out the basic form and the materials. In the end the result will always be different from the sketch depending on all the small but significant details of the flowers that are available on the exhibition day.

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A Floating World: Then and Now?

Earlier this week a new exhibition opened at The Historical Museum of Oslo. A collection of old Japanese woodblock prints by the great masters are exhibited together with samples from a resent donation of contemporary prints by the artist Okamoto Ryusei. The exhibition is called "A floating world: Then and now?" and is running until June 5th.

My ikebana teacher Lisbeth Lerum was asked to create ikebana arrangements to go with the exhibition. With the tragic events in Japan in mind the task of creating beautiful ikebana of course took on a deeper meaning than expected. The arrangements are referring to themes such as kimonos, woodblock printing and nature.

If you are in Oslo tomorrow you can take part in a lecture about Japanese woodblock printing at the exhibition, or you can bring your own or other peoples children to an exciting printing workshop with Okamoto Ryusei. Sunday March 27th there will be more ikebana arrangements in the Museum as the traditional Hanami day is offering a broad selection of Japanese culture. This years Hanami day will be held in solidarity with the people of Japan.

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