SHOGETSUDO KORYU DEMONSTRATION and WORKSHOP

Members of the Melbourne Chapter of Ikebana International and their guests were pleased to welcome Shihosai Uematsu, the Iemoto designate, of the Shogetsudo Koryu School at the meeting held on Tuesday 11th November. In the morning Mr Uematsu gave a demonstration of ikebana works focusing on the Seika form and in the afternoon he lead a workshop, which was attended by 44 members from all schools of the Chapter, on the subject of 'Ryureika', a modern form of Seika.

Above Mrs Chieko Yazaki, Melbourne teacher of the Shogetsudo Koryu School of Ikebana, and Mr Uematsu. 

The  photo above shows Mr Uematsu explaining the principles underlying the Seika form.

Below are other works created by Mr Uematsu for the demonstration

As Tuesday was Armistice Day Mr Uematsu created a commemorative freestyle ikebana for those who gave their lives in war and at 11.00am a minutes silence was observed by all present.

             

Below some of the 44 members of the Melbourne Chapter who participated in the workshop.

Click on the coloured text to see other photos from the Shogetsudo Koryu demonstration.

The marriage of ikebana and haiku



November promises to be an lively month in Melbourne for anyone interested in ikebana.

Visiting master from Japan, Mr Shihosai Uematsu

The Shogetsudo-koryu school in Australia is small, but growing rapidly.

This school of ikebana was established by a Buddhist monk, Ichiro Zeshinken, 250 years ago. It was named for Eison Shogetsudo, a thirteenth century Japanese philosopher, whose teachings are a reference point for the school. It established the Seika style, which embraces the principle of Yin-Yang balance and the five elements of the universe.

Mr Uematsu is the son of the current head of Shogetsudo-koryu school in Kyoto and will shortly take over as the 13th headmaster. He will showcase the school's style at the general meeting of Ikebana International on November 11, demonstrating both traditional and contemporary arrangements.

Everyone is welcome to attend and the meeting is free of charge.

There will also be a workshop in the afternoon with Mr Uematsu. This is for members only and booking is essential. Contact Mrs Chieko Yazaki on cyyazaki@gmail.com for more

 information.   

A reminder about the

Ikenobo demonstration and workshop on Sunday 30 November, 1.30-2.30, at Rippon Lea, 192 Hotham Street, Elsternwick. Rippon Lea House and Garden is currently running a Spring Garden Festival with a wide range of talks and displays. More details are available on the National Trust Victoria website www.springgardenfestival.com.au

Cost: $25 or $20 for members of the National Trust.

 A similar workshop was also held last month and as can be seen from the photo below the old mansion and its garden provided a wonderful backdrop for flower-arranging.   

 At the Sogetsu school meeting Monday October 21 Lara Telford presented the theme of Haiku and Ikebana. Both arts are minimalistic, offering an economy of essence.

Free-style arrangements accompanied haiku verses, both ancient and modern, were selected by members.

A modern verse....European food -/every blasted plate/is round

  Nothing there but/the whorl of a fern/this floating world. Kawabata Bosha

And a personal note:

This is my final blog for the Melbourne Chapter of Ikebana International. When Pat Hetrel, raised the suggestion of starting a blog two years ago I agreed to take on the task of shepherding it through its infancy, although I could offer no relevant experience! It has been a steep learning curve and I have greatly appreciated assistance from many people, especially Rosemary Parry-Brock and Christopher James. Everyone who helped by sending photos or information, as well as those who patiently held backdrops while others took the photos have all contributed, for which I am very grateful.

Christopher James is the new blogmaster and I urge all members to keep in mind the potential of the blog to advertise our activities and showcase our work. The potential is, as yet, largely untapped. Jennie Stuart



Goodbye

On 29 September a simple, but elegant, service was held to farewell Carlyne Patterson, who died after a long battle with motor neurone disease. Many present had known Carlyne as a Sogetsu teacher and others knew her as a colleague. She trained with Norman Sparnon and three of her students have been awarded the Norman and Mary Sparnon travelling scholarship!
Phillip Keon's arrangement of anthuria, white roses, chrysanthemums and a profusion of other material lay on top of the coffin during the service.

Some pictures during preparation......

At the general meeting of the Melbourne Chapter of Ikebana International on 14 October children's author, Tetsuta Watanabe gave an enthralling talk, alluding along the way to the similarities between his stories and ikebana, especially the key ingredients of simplicity, narrative and visual impact. He lives in the Dandenong ranges and many of his stories (in Japanese) are about the Australian bush.

 

He later wrote to say how much he had appreciated the kind and enthusiastic audience. And if you missed the occasion there will be other opportunities to meet Tetsuta at future workshops and exhibitions, as he is a Sogetsu student of Lara Telford's.

Many members made arrangements with the theme of  children in mind......

  
Some diary dates :

The next general meeting on Tuesday November 11 at
Toorak Uniting Church Hall, 603 Toorak Road, Toorak, will start promptly at 10 (note the earlier starting time).
There will be a demonstration by several members of the Shogetsudokoryu School who are visiting from Japan, led by the iemoto-designate.
A free-style workshop in the afternoon is for members only.
For further details please contact Mrs Chieko Yazaki : cyyazaki@gmail.com

On Sunday November 30 , 1.30 -2.30, there will be an ikenobo demonstration and workshop at Rippon Lea House and Garden, 192 Hotham Street, Elsternwick, led by Mrs Yukako Braun. It is part of the Spring Garden Festival of the National Trust, Victoria.
Everyone is welcome so tell friends and family.
Cost : $25 or $20 for National Trust members. 
For further details: www.springgardenfestival.com.au