Shoso's Course at RMIT University

Shoso Shimbo will again teach  "Japanese Aesthetics: From Ikebana to Contemporary Art" at School of Architecture and Design, RMIT University from July 2015. It will be available for anyone (not just for RMIT students). This class will take participants on a journey to explore the theory of Japanese aesthetics through practical exercises. 
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Ikebana Today 35

A style of Ikebana (general term), the ikebana in the Muromachi period seems to mean giving new life to the cut flower. In search of the meaning of life in the Japanese cultural tradition, we came to the issue which is at the centre of Asian philosophy. It is now clear that life means essence or Kami, the divine.    

A philosopher, Toshihiko Izutsu explains the issue in the simplest way in his great book, “Consciousness and Essence” (1983), using flower as an example. He notes a comment by Fugan, a Chinese zen monk, “Seeing a flower is for many people seeing it in their dream”.

What is really happening is that a person sees a flower as a substance, which is in tact a false image. If people realise that nothing has its substance, the whole universe would be chaos. The Asia philosophy gives a new order to the chaos. Flower as well as everything else is reborn as non-substantial entity. One is all. All is one. It can be seen as a mystic or religious perception of the world. I think I had better stop here, because I never have experienced it, a kind of enlightenment at the profound level.   

Anyhow, the term, ikebana has such a philosophical context behind it. In short, ikebana means to give flower new life, reviving it as non-substantial entity. This understanding actually gives freedom to interpret ikebana in many ways. We will look at how we could interpret ikebana in the next issues.

The image is my work for Hanabishi restaurant. Because I took the photo immediately after arranging flower, the colours of flowers are not so obvious. Once the flowers start to open, the arrangement looks different very day. I sometime notice that not many Japanese restaurants in Melbourne display Ikebana. Some restaurants display the western arrangements. I think Ikebana would be a better and cheaper option. Please contact me for a free quote.     

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New Article in Living Now Magazine May 2015

Shoso's new article on Ikebana, 10 Reasons to Love Flowers was published in Living Now magazine. Living Now, Issue 182, pp.10-11. Get a copy near you or read online. http://bit.ly/1bNhHg0

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Ikebana Today 34

It seems that in the Muromachi period, some argued that, unlike tatehana, ikebana was used to revive or give new life to the flower. Obviously, many people seem to have understood that message instantly. What did the word, Ikasu or giving new life mean to them?

Probably the best way to investigate that is to look into the documents written around that time and define how the term, Iku or Sei (life) was used. However, my intention is to propose a hypothesis that could encourage discussion rather than conducting an empirical study.

Hideo Kobayashi has argued that in Shiki Masaoka’s approach in poetry Sei means essence or even Kami (the divine). If you can express Sei in language, you can create poetry. If you can give Sei to the cut flower, you can create ikebana. Both poetry and ikebana are looking at the same issue that is at the centre of Asian philosophy.    

It is fascinating for me to look into ikebana and its meaning in terms of Asian philosophy. However, such a complicated topic does not seem to be in fashion today even in the academic fields. I may discuss this issue in much more simplified fashion in the next issues.

This is a table arrangement for a round table. The design is more like a Western arrangement. As this was for a home party on the Australia Day, the main flowers are Banksia, expressing natural movement. For the background, I chose green and yellow, Australian colours.     

I am now going to be a regular contributor for LIVING NOW magazine. I hope you will enjoy my articles on Ikebana in that magazine as well.        

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Ikebana in English: Bibliographical Essay

Shoso's new article, "Ikebana in English: Bibliographical Essay" is published. 

"English language literature on Ikebana, particularly academic publications, is scarce. However, a small number of non-academic publications such as introductory books or articles and collected works of artists have been constantly published for over the last fifty years. Consequently, even in generating research questions, Ikebana researchers in the West sometimes have to rely on non-academic publications which may represent the viewpoint of just a single Ikebana school. And even in academic publications, it is not unusual to encounter mystic discourses on Ikebana or legends unsupported by historical records.

This short essay is not an attempt to rectify those misunderstandings on Ikebana. Neither is it a comprehensive bibliography on Ikebana. My aim, rather, is to present a basic reference point for future research on Ikebana. It also hope to suggest areas for further research". 

Ikebana in English: Bibliographical Essay, International Journal of Ikebana Studies, Vol.2, 2014, pp.99-106

How to order a copy: https://ikebanastudies.wordpress.com/journal/
How to join the society: https://ikebanastudies.wordpress.com/membership/ 

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New Publication

My paper, Ikebana to Contemporary Art: Rosalie Gascoigne was republished in this new online journal. 私の論説「いけ花から現代芸術へ」がIAFORの学術誌、日本文化と芸術特集号に再度出版されました。ご参照下さい。
http://iafor.org/the-iafor-academic-review-volume-1-issue-2/

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Shoso & His Students at MIFGS 2015

Enjoy the floral works by Shoso Shimbo and his students at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show 2015 in 2 min.

Thank you the exhibitors for your great efforts. Thank you all the assistants for your hard work.
Thank you Maddie for allowing us to use your beautiful song. We hope many people will enjoy your music.

HD: https://youtu.be/Z31-LwhP1DI



SD: https://youtu.be/cDBHBl1vDzs



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Melbourne Flower Show 2015

Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show will open on 24 March 2015. Shoso and three of his students, Shoan (Angeline), Risa and Akemi will exhibit their works.

Thank you very much Jo, Shoan, Tian & Shosai (Jennie S.) for great help set up my work over the three days from 22 to 24 March. Especially the last day all of you worked so hard without any break. I am so grateful to have such a skilful team but I will encourage more people to join our team next time.  

I'll write more about the show in another post soon.

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Ikebana Today 33

In the Muromachi period it seems that a new style of Ikebana, known as ikebana, claimed that it gave new life to flowers, unlike tatehana, the main style of Ikebana at the time. What does it mean to give new life?

New life probably means an artistic or symbolic life rather than a biological life. The claim may mean that ikebana revives flowers by transforming them into an art work that expresses a sense of life. Such an interpretation is convincing, but it seems to be a bit superficial to me.   

What does this new life in ikebana really mean? I may be asking about the essence of ikebana and Ikebana. Although there have been some attempts to answer this question in the history of Ikebana studies, they are not really convincing.  

My first quest is to find out what life is in the Japanese cultural context. How did the people of the time perceive life? Is there any basic concept that prevails in Japanese history? “Yes, there is” is the answer from Hideo Kobayashi, a well-known literary critic from last century.     

This month I would like to show you my work for Koko restaurant in Crown Hotel. They have been a regular client during New Year for many years. Clients’ needs come first for any commercial flowers. My work has to be safe and convenient to move around. Because of many conditions my work tend to be similar every year. However, I have experimented with a few new design elements this time. 

I’m planning to exhibit my work at the Melbourne Flower Show in March and give a paper at a conference of the International Society of Ikebana Studies in Kyoto. Please visit my site for the details


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Shoso at Conferences

a. Shoso has been invited to give a talk about contemporary Ikebana at Kyoto University of Art and Design in April 2015. Japanese presentation.
When: 2-4pm, 2 April 2015
Where: Kyoto University of Art and Design
https://ikebanastudies.wordpress.com/2015/01/08/isis-regular-conference-spring-2015/

b. Shoso will present his paper about “Power in the Discourse of Art: Ephemeral Arts as Counter-monuments” at the Asian Conference on Arts and Humanities in April 2015. English presentation.   
When: 3-5 April 2015
Where: The Osaka International Convention Center
http://iafor.org/conferences/acah2015/

His paper will be published in the conference proceedings and will be available online.  

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10 Plants to Have for Ikebana Artists

One of our new Ikebana students asked me what kind of plants to grow in her garden. She is very lucky to have some space to grow special plants for Ikebana. Here is a list of 10 plants that I found very useful for Ikebana and relatively easy to grow. Start to collect these plants in your garden. They are all in my garden. I'll present some other time a list of 10 plants for more advanced Ikebana artists.

1. Japanese Maple (Momiji). You must have at least one maple tree. I am fortunate to have seven. Here is some guide to buy and look after Japanese maple.

2. Japonica (Boke). Personally I like white best. If possible please grow red and pink as well.

3. Black Pine (Kuromatsu). There are many types of cypresses or pines that are useful for Ikebana. Choose what you like. If you have large space, Black Pine is the best.

4. Japanese Mahonia (Hiiragi nanten). There are several types. I like the one with smaller leaves. Its branches are ideal for practicing basic styles of Ikebana.

5. Camelia. Popular types in Ikebana are white single petal ones such as Kamo Hon Ami, Wabisuke   or Shiratama. The photo is our new Kamo Hon Ami. I am looking for Wabisuke now.

6. Vines. They are wonderful for Ikebana. Jasmine is good. My favourite is Chocolate Vine (Akebi)(photo).

7. Pieris/Temple Bells (Asebi). They are so beautiful all year around. My recommendation is one with bright green leaves and pure white flowers.

8. Magnolia. I have Royal Star (Kobushi) and Manchu Fan. Choose what you like.

9. Throatwort (Yugiriso). This can be a nice filler for any style of Ikebana.  

10. Pearlbush (Rikyubai). Its white flowers in spring are so sweet.

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Basic Ikebana Articles

I decided to republish the following two of my short articles on Ikebana for two reasons. First, I am going to rewrite and extend the first article, Ikebana and Zen for a journal.  I'll let you know the details here sometime soon.

Second, I am disappointed to witness unkind behaviour of an Ikebana practitioner lately. This Ikebana teacher represents some Ikebana group but he does not seem to understand what Ikebana is for. What he did would not be accepted in Japan where Ikebana teachers are well respected not just for their skills but chiefly for their virtues. 

As far as I know, an Ikebana teacher could not survive in Japan if he or she is rude, unkind or ungenerous. There is social expectation for him/her, which could be social pressure or even sanction. Just imagine a role of a priest in a community in a country like Australia. There is something similar in the role of an Ikebana artist in Japan.   

Sometimes we have to be strong to be kind to others. Good Ikebana artists seem to know that flower can give power and courage to overcome their inner fears.      

Ikebana may have become popular overseas, but do they really understand that it is a way of personal development?

1. Ikebana and Zen: The Ten Virtues of Ikebana

2. Ikebana and Shinto

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Ikebana Today 32

In the Muromachi period, Ikebana had two contrasting styles, the official tatehana and popular ikebana. I am assuming that there was a cultural conflict between them. Tatehana belongs to the Yayoi – the aristocrat - Buddhism tradition, while ikebana belongs to the Jomon - samurai - Shinto tradition. Based on this assumption, we now can answer the question: Does ikebana mean to bring flowers back to life or to make flowers live longer?

The answer is former. If the latter was correct, the interpretation is not logical. Both styles of Ikebana are trying to make flowers live longer by supplying water to them and therefore, there is no difference between them. There has to be a contrasting relationship between them. 

The former, on the other hand, means that ikebana tries to bring flowers back to life but tatehana is not. It is logical. But what does it mean to make flowers revive? This is more difficult question. We will think about it in following issues.

This is a sample of a bridal bouquet I made recently. The request was to use complementary colours. To achieve dynamic harmony, like Ikebana, I used 3 different sizes of roses and carefully arranged the 2 different colours. We will create any style of bridal bouquets.

My course at RMIT University, Japanese Aesthetics from Ikebana to Contemporary Art will start again in 2015. Please join the course and meet interesting creative students. 

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Driftwoods Composition

I was asked to create a small sculpture using driftwoods. I tried to show what the natural materials can be rather than what I can do to them.

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Australia Day Flower

A table arrangement for an Australia Day home party.

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