Ikebana Delivery for Wedding

This is a sample of Large Ikebana for delivery with a give-away container. Shoso made this arrangement for a wedding reception. 

Shoso can set up a Ikebana display of any size on the site but some clients accept only delivery service.  This is the largest size for delivery.

Details: Display and Delivery

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A Table Arrangement for a Spring Dinner Party

A table arrangement (top) + a medium arrangement: This is another sample of our Special Home Party Package A. Please click images to enlarge.

Package A. 1 medium + 1 or 2 table arrangements (small b in our price list) $250 ~

Package B. 2 medium + 1 or 2 table arrangements (small b in our price list) $450 ~

Go to Display & Delivery page for more details.
  
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New Product: Mini Stage Flower

Would like to offer fresh flower arrangements to your guests at a budget price? Each arrangement has a special wrapping at the base to keep the flowers fresh and a Japanese paper overlay. Your guests will be impressed by these classy little bouquets. 
From $20 each, Minimum order 10.

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Free Ikebana Calendar 2015

Download free ikebana calendar 2015 by Shoso Shimbo.
International Version with no holiday
http://www.scribd.com/doc/239537657/Ikebana-Calendar-2015-International-Version
Australian Version with Australian Holidays
http://www.scribd.com/doc/239537249/Ikebana-Calendar-2015-Australia-Version
日本版
http://www.scribd.com/doc/239546204/Ikebana-Calendar-2015-Japanese-Version

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Ikebana Today 27

We have been discussing what Ikebana is. One of the interesting questions was why ikebana has become Ikebana. In other words, why ikebana, a specific style of Ikebana has become a general term for Japanese flower arrangement. Originally it was just a reaction against the authoritative styles such as Tatahena and Rikka.

While I was reading an article by Dr Inoue, some ideas came to my mind. One of the interesting findings in his article is that there was a big dispute over ikebana in Japanese history. Rikka masters (Ikenobo school), ikebana masters (other ikebana schools) and tea masters were all arguing that ikebana belongs to them but not to others.

Even though ikebana was counter cultural, probably it was so popular that everybody wanted it. Because it was so popular, ikebana has become Ikebana, a general term. That is a quite convincing hypothesis but now we have to ask a more important question: why was ikebana so popular? It might have something special that Tatehana or Rikka did not have. That might be something to do with the essence of Ikebana. We have to think more about the nature of ikebana.

This is a sample of a small arrangement of our home party package, which consists of a small arrangement, table arrangement and medium arrangement. Using my client’s  colorful container, I chose to use rather simple and clean combination of white and green.   

I am going to teach “Japanese Aesthetics: From Ikebana to Contemporary Art” at RMIT University from October this year. Please check the details. 
http://www.shortcourses.rmit.edu.au/course_page.php?course=S320193

Reference: Inoue, Osamu (2011). Chabana and Nageirebana in the early modern times: Their differences and similarities. 

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Ikebana Gallery Award 2014

Ikebana Gallery Award Committee has announced the results of Ikebana Gallery Award 2014. Shoso Shimbo's students did very well this year. Congratulations!  

http://ikebanaaustralia.blogspot.com.au/2014/08/ikebana-gallery-award-2014.html

http://ikebanaaustralia.blogspot.com.au/2014/08/peoples-choice-award-2014.html

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Over 1000 Likes for Our Students' Facebook Page

Thank you for over 1000 likes for Ikebana Gallery. https://www.facebook.com/IkebanaGallery

Daily meditation using materials all from our garden.

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Shoso at RMIT University

Shoso Shimbo is going to teach “Japanese Aesthetics: From Ikebana to Contemporary Art” at RMIT University from October 2014. This is a practical course for designers and artists.

Please check the details. http://bit.ly/1uIw3Gy   

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Ikebana Today 26

We have been examining this huge question, what is Ikebana? We have been trying to find how the word, Ikebana came about historically. I assumed that ikebana (a style of Ikebana) was created in contrast to Tatehana and Rikka, the mainstream styles of Ikebana. 

In answer to my question about the origin of ikebana Dr Osamu Inoue (Vice president of International Society of Ikebana Studies, Kyoto University of Art and Design) sent me his paper, “ Chabana and Nageirebana in the early modern times: Their differences and similarities.” It is a brilliant work and suggests that my assumption about ikebana was right to some extent.

However, the origin of ikebana is too complicated to talk about in this essay. There are so many definitions of ikebana in Japanese history. One thing we do know is that in the early modern era ikebana was in opposition to Tatehana, the style of flower arrangements mainly for ceremonies. In Tatehana, the main stem tends to stand upright at the centre of the arrangement. Some people felt that the style was too rigid and too artificial. It was a wish to create something more naturalistic that motivated the development of ikebana. 

At the base of the long history of Japanese Ikebana philosophy is the opposition between Tatehana and ikebana, between artificial and naturalistic, and man and nature. These opposing ideas led to a deepening of the philosophy of Ikebana. The result was a unique Japanese art form with a rich aesthetic.

Ikebana means to make flowers alive, which can be achieved through respecting how they are in nature. If you manipulate flowers too much, you are not making them alive. I’ll discuss this point further sometime soon. 

This is the work I made for Hanabishi restaurant in Melbourne. They always prepare interesting materials for me and I was given yuzu this time. I hope you will enjoy my Ikebana works as well as the beautiful dishes at Hanabishi. 

This is the third year we run Ikebana Gallery Award for the Ikebana students all around the world. It seems to be popular with the number of page views over 50,000. We will publish the result in August. Please visit our new website.
http://ikebanaaustralia.blogspot.com.au

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Lights On Lights Off

Shoso Shimbo was selected as one of the eight artists commissioned for the Lights On | Lights Off project.

When: 26, 27 and 31 July 2014
Where: Upper West Side, 220 Spencer St (Corner Spencer and Lt Bourke St), Melbourne CBD https://www.facebook.com/events/310240079143296/

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Artists Emerge at WTC

Shoso Shimbo was selected for a sculpture exhibition, Artists Emerge @ WTC curated by MARS Gallery.

When: Wednesday July 16 to Sunday August 24, 2014Where: The WTC atrium, The World Trade Centre, Siddeley St, Melbourne Admission: Free  

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Ikebana Today 25

In the last issue, I presented a hypothesis that the term Ikebana may have been created in contrast to Rikka, the main stream of Ikebana. Notice that I am using Ikebana in two different ways here, Ikebana as a historically specific style of Ikebana and Ikebana as a general term for various forms of Japanese flower arrangement. I’ll use ikebana for the former and Ikebana for the latter in this article.

Does my hypothesis have any grounds? Kobayashi (2007) states that Rikka was established in the early Edo period (1603-1868). In that case, the term ikebana may have appeared in the early 18th century when many textbooks on Ikebana were published.

I consulted with Dr Kobayashi and Dr Inoue, president and vice president of the International Society of Ikebana Studies, ikebana-isis.org. I feel as if I am getting tutorials from two of Japan’s top Ikebana researchers. If you are interested, please visit isis’s site and join the society or purchase its journal.    

Anyway, their advice was that ikebana appeared much earlier in Japanese history. It already appeared in one of the first Ikebana textbooks, Sendensho (1445). I need to rectify my hypothesis a bit. The term, ikebana may have come about in opposition to Tatehana rather than Rikka. If so, what does that mean?          

This is a welcoming flower for a private residence in Melbourne. The focus was the marvellous movements of the Bottle Brush branches. As the main feature was the branches, I did not use many flowers for this arrangement. Otherwise, it would lose its sophistication.   

Reference

Kobayashi, Yoshiho (2007). Hana no Seiritsu to Tenkai. Kyoto: Izumi Shobo.

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Camberwell Art Show 2014

See my collage at the Camberwell Art Show. It runs till Sunday 6 July. This is my first entry to the show. http://www.camberwellrotaryartshow.org.au/

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Thank You

Thank you for over 50000 page views for our students' blog. http://ikebanaaustralia.blogspot.com.au
Somehow the students' blog is much more popular than mine. www.shoso.com.au 
Daily meditation using Japanese maple and camellia from our garden.

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Ikebana Today 24

What is ikebana? Let’s look into the word itself, Ikebana. When did people start using it? They needed to invent the word to describe something that could not be described using existing words. What was happening?  

Actually the word, Ikebana is really complicated. Historically, the first form of Ikebana was called Tatehana, standing flower. It became Rikka, which is in a sense the most sophisticated style of Ikebana, and is still practiced today particularly in the Ikenobo school. Rikka also means standing flower and the name reflects the form of arrangements made in this style.

Tatehana means to make lying flower (cut flower) vertical. That’s all. But Ikebana means to make dying flower alive. The focus is on something deeper than the superficial forms.     

It is also worth noting that in the beginning Ikebana was not a mainstream of style of flower arrangement, which had moved from Tatehana to Rikka. I suppose that some people felt the need to create a new word, Ikebana, as a way of criticising the major styles at that time, claiming that they were making flowers alive rather than simply making them stand up. 

Considering that Rikka was supported by samurais, aristocrats, and even emperors, naming a style “Ikebana” could be seen as an implied criticism of those in the upper classes, or even of the hierarchy itself. Imagine how radical it was to criticise flower arrangements appreciated by emperors. 

However, this is all just my hypothesis. I’ll talk more about the word, Ikebana in the next issues, based on the advice from the top Ikebana researchers in International Society of Ikebana Studies (www.ikebana-isis.org).  

This is the work I made for the exhibition of Mr and Ms Hoshino at Lesley Kehoe Galleries in December last year. Ms Hoshino’s container was extremely challenging to work with but I felt relived to know that both artists were happy with my work.     

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