WINTER SOLSTICE (AUTUMN IKEBANA?)

While hanging socks to dry last week...

...I was startled when  this Australian King Parrot came and perched on the line. I was surprised by its unusually bold behaviour, which would suggest it was used to being fed by someone nearby. Judging from its plumage colouring, it was most likely a juvenile male.  It was a lovely brief visit.

In a recent Geelong class......

...Heather's exercise was to make a Basic Upright nageire ikebana using a vertical fixture. Her materials were Silky Oak Grevillia robusta, and Hibiscus.

Karen made a reverse Basic Slanting nageire ikebana. Her materials were Magnolia grandiflora and Dutch Iris Iris X Hollandica.

Anne's exercise was the first in Book 3 of the Sogetsu curriculum, a Vertical Ikebana. Her materials were dried Pampas grass Cortoderia selloana and Common stock Mathiola incana.

In the same Geelong class I set the senior students the exercise of making an ikebana that extends the work beyond the vessel, so that it is not simply an ikebana within the vessel. In this case it is acceptable for the materials to touch the surface of the table. However, it must not look like the material has fallen onto the surface. The placement must be quite deliberate.

Jo used a large branch of dried Corokia that had been sprayed red, the main stem of which extended to the left. She added some lengths of bamboo that stood on the right side of the work and were supported by the tangle of the Corokia branches.

Maree created an unexpected interpretation of the exercise. Her principal material was two stones of the same kind. One was set within the vessel and the second placed on the table top. The botanical material was Banksia leaves and orange Chrysanthemum flowers.

Ellie used dried branch material which she stood on both sides, outside the vessel. Her fresh botanical materials were Acacia and Straw flowers Xerochrysm bracteatum.

Helen used a strong, dried branch set on a similarly-coloured vessel with a striated surface complementing the surface of the branch. Helen added three Forelle pears Pyrus, to add freshness and another colour to an otherwise monochrome arrangement. Unfortunately, this camera angle only shows the stalk of the third pear that is behind the lower part of the branch.

Christine has used several flowering branches of Pincushion Hakea H. laurina. The branches stretch strongly to the right while floating above the table surface. The base of a single small branch has been allowed to project to the left of the vessel.

Maureen has extended her ikebana to the left by using a curling dried branch that sits on the table and connects to the tallest vase. The ikebana also stretches to the right by the addition of a small colour-matched vase which has a green Bracken fern Pteridium aquilinum, stem extending to the right. The floral material is Ornamental cabbage Brassica oleracea

Today is the winter solstice in Australia, our shortest day of the year. Its is appropriately cold and damp, 12C in the middle of the day and drizzling .

My autumn-looking ikebana is therefore a little unseasonal. Our autumn and winter temperatures have been milder than usual, especially the overnight temperatures. So the last of the late hydrangea flowers have only recently darkened to their richer autumn tonings. A few weeks ago I spotted the red berries of this Cotoneaster and was taken by the long straight line of the branch. I arranged it naturalistically and added a small Hydrangea flower with some yellow leaves. The vase is by the American ceramic artist Mark Bell.

Greetings from Christopher

21st June 2026

SOMETIMES WE STRUGGLE

The early morning sun shone brightly on the Gum tree Eucalyptus in the background of this photo. The closer trees framing the image are at the bottom of our garden. The sight was uplifting after several days of overcast weather with rain that was welcomed by the garden. 

During the rain Spring Creek in Torquay rose considerably because its mouth has been blocked for at least a couple of months. The catchment area of creeks along this part of the coast is not large so they are intermittent and do not flow continuously into the sea. The boardwalk across the creek in the middle of this photo was completely flooded 10 days ago.

Overnight the heavy rains caused the creek to breakthrough the sand barrier and the boardwalk became useable again.

In my Melbourne class...

...Chen's exercise was to make a variation of an upright arrangement in a nageire (tall vase) style. The angles did not quite work out as desired so the arrangement is not correct. However, the exercise turned out to be a good practise in fixing techniques. The unidentified main branch material appears to have a pea flower and the "flower line" on the left is a Grevillea.

Julie-Ann's exercise was Variation No 1 Slanting, also in the nageire style. She used a form of Broom Genisteae, for the branch material and Roses for the flower line. In this exercise a wide space is created between the two principal branches.

I had asked the advanced students to make a "Winter Ikebana". Eugenia used some bare branch material and some stems of Chinese fringe flower Loropetalum rubrum, in a tall tuquoise glazed vessel. The two elements were separated to emphasise the contrast between them.

Marcia arranged two stems of Manchurian pear Pyrus ussuriensis, so that the right hand one echoed the oval vessel she used. Two Camellia flowers created a focal point on the left side.

On Tuesday of last week I attended the meeting of Ikebana International, Melbourne Chapter. A demonstration was presented by Cheiko Yazaki, head of the Shogetsudo Koryu School in Melbourne, and her student Helen Marriott on the theme of using New Zealand flax Phormium. Unfortunately, the flax in our garden is still rather battered after last summer's heat and low rainfall over the previous six months. I therefore called on my friend Trish who kindly provided me with some very long leaves. 

Then I began my struggle. Before the I. I meeting I had an early morning engagement, so arrived at I.I. a feeling a little stressed. My only equipment was my Hasami (Japanese scissors) and not my usual tool box; none of the handy extras for making ikebana. I had one long branch of Cape Honeysuckle Tecomaria capensis, with bright orange-red flowers at the end, and the New Zealand flax provided by Trish.

The flax leaves made beautiful sweeping curves, which immediately wanted to straighten themselves out again. I managed to temporarily secure them by inserting them through each other. Finally I had to resort to using some fine wire, the thickness of cotton thread, to hold them in place. The lines made by the flax required me to change my design plan and use the Cape Honeysuckle as a central mass instead of a line extending to one side.

 

 Forty minutes later...

...I had an ikebana that had evolved from what the materials allowed. Lesson, we must hold our preconceptions very lightly.

The wood fired vessel is by an unidentified New South Wales ceramicist and was a birthday present to me in the late 1990s. It was bought at the Meat Market Craft Centre in North Melbourne. Suggestions of the makers identity would be most welcome.

Greetings from Christopher.

14th June 2026

WORLD IKEBANA DAY 6th JUNE

Yesterday some of my Geelong students organised an afternoon function to celebrate World Ikebana Day which was established by the Japanese Ikebana Art Association in 2020.

L - R, standing: Christine, Helen, Heather, Karen, Maree

Seated: Ellie, Jo, Laurie, me, Maureen

Recently in my Geelong class...

...Jo's arrangement used colours in contrast in a tall nageire style vessel. She used a branch of red Cotoneaster berries and red roses. Three of the roses were held in a fold of the large contrasting green leaf.

 

Ann's exercise was to make a Variation number 5 moribana in which two kenzans are used. The two principal lines of branch material, possibly Bursaria tenuifolia, are on one kenzan, while the hikae (flower line) Tulips are on their own kenzan.

In both Geelong and Torquay classes, I set some of the students the exercise of making an ikebana arrangement "Incorporating the area where it is placed". This comes from an early edition of the Sogetsu curriculum. 

In Torquay, Kerryn used an oval vessel with a hole through its centre. She used a multi-headed stem of Red Hot poker Kniphofia, an orange Poppy, Marigold Calendula, and Pittosporum with orange berries. This proved to be an opportunity to learn the use of "cross bar" fixing.

In Geelong, Maureen made an arrangement using "Green materials" only. She also extended the materials forward and to the back of the arrangement. Unfortunately this placement is lost by the flattening effect of the photograph. 

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Ellie's arrangement extended to the front left to incorporate the area around the footed vessel. She used a Strelitzia nicolai leaf, Statice Limonium, and Chrysanthemums.

Helen's arrangement also extended to the left and used flowers in shades of pink that harmonised with pink in the glass vessel. The materials included Statice, an unidentified deep pink flower within the arrangement and Chrysanthemums.

My ikebana this week was made at a Victorian Sogetsu Branch workshop that was led by Akemi Suzuki. Akemi asked the participants to think about how looking through a window changes what you see, because of the effect of framing. We may pay more attention to what is visible because we do not experience the distraction of other elements in the environment.

I decided to make an irregular frame from some natural branches of Ash Fraxinus trees. I had noticed that some of the side branches were almost at right angles with the principal branch. The frame had two clearly defined apertures and I decided to use only the largest one. My materials were Autumn coloured Hydrangeas and a Tree philodendron Philodendron bipinnatifidum leaf. To emphasise the "framing" I placed the leaf within the frame and cut it so that it did not extend beyond the frame. The Hydrangeas were kept within the frame.

The vessel is by the Victorian ceramicist Mel Ogden

Greetings from Christopher

7th June 2026

FRESH AND DRIED LINES

In a recent class with my Geelong students...

...Anne created a horizontal variation No 6 in which the three principal lines radiate at approximately 120 degrees from each other. This particular style works particularly well when it is placed on a table so that it can be seen from all around.

Maree's exercise was to make an ikebana paying attention to the place where it was to be set. This large structural work was made to be set outside where it would be viewed from a terrace. She elevated the work on a support structure made from Birch Betula pendula branches, then added white painted Tortuous Willow Salix branches. The fresh material was two large Monstera M. deliciosa, leaves and red roses placed both in front of, and behind, the large leaves, A dried Monstera leaf was added for textural contrast.

The senior students were given the task of making a "Double Shin" ikebana. Among other things, this requires two closely matching Shin lines. One of these lines needs to be supported with additional material to create asymmetry in the ikebana.

Maureen used Manchurian pear Pyrus ussuriensis, Geranium flowers and Grevillea leaves.

Christine used Correa glabra and some pink Statice Limonium. 

Helen used two Strelitzia reginae with Boat lily Tradescantia spathacea.

Ellie used New Zealand flax Phormium tenax, Alstroemeria and Billy buttons Craspedia.

A couple of weeks ago I was removing a fairly large amount of dead stems from the Umbrella sedge Cyperus alternifolius and thought it would be wasteful to just place it in the compost. 

So, with a little extra cutting of some fresh stems, I was able to make an ikebana using Fresh and Dried material of the same kind. These stems were nice and long and lent themselves to an angular treatment of the lines. To emphasise the different nature of the fresh and dry stems, I created different shapes with each kind. I have added some red Geranium flowers as a colour focus. It was after I set the ikebana that I noticed the repetition of the green lines in the shadow on the wall, which gave added depth to the work.

Greetings from Christopher
31st May 2026

 

DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES OF AUTUMN

When I was in Melbourne last week I was delighted to see the beginnings of rich autumn colouring in the trees on the Oak Lawn of the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne.

This specimen turned out to be a Pin Oak Quercus Palustris, native to southern Ontario in Canada, as well as the central and eastern United States. 

Nearby, this very large tree is a Liquidambar which has a natural range from southeast Asia across North America and the Mediterranean.

The nearby bushland to the west of Torquay looks like this in the late autumn. The visual changes in this bushland between the seasons are subtle and are most apparent through the flowering of particular species.

For example, here is a recent photograph of Common heath Epacris impressa, the floral emblem of the state of Victoria. The photo was taken by Laurie in the area where the previous photograph was taken.

Now to ikebana classes. I asked my Torquay students to make an ikebana incorporating woody material.

Kerryn brought a single small branch that looked like a wind blown tree in miniature. At the base she added some Sage Salvia officinalis, in flower, maintaining the sense of movement.

Pamela had an upward-reaching dry branch to which she added some seed heads of what may be Sorghum and Dietes. These materials also had an upward movement.

In Melbourne, my senior students made autumn ikebana arrangements.

Marcia used red Siberian dogwood Cornus alba, some unidentified seed-heads, Billy buttons Pycnosorus, and Dwarf Nandina domestica, to make a vertical ikebana reaching up from a mass in a bowl-shaped vessel.

Eugenia arranged ornamental Grape vine Vitis vinifera, in two small bronze vases. The lines stretch horizontally with leaves ranging from pale pink to deep maroon.

Julie-Ann's exercise was a basic upright ikebana in a nageire vessel. In my opinion, it is the most difficult exercise in the early part of the Sogetsu curriculum. She has used Magnolia branches for the principal lines and mauve Chrysanthemum flowers.

A week and a half ago I attended a meeting of Ikebana International Melbourne. The guest speaker was the artist 

Jo Reitze who spoke about her work of capturing images of private gardens by painting them. The members were asked to create ikebana arrangements inspired by their gardens. I think my ikebana is inspired by my local environment more generally. The vessel I have used is a very narrow-mouthed tall, black ikebana vase. Around the vase I placed a piece of driftwood, over which I draped a dried Papyrus flower-head from the conservatory. Then I added a single Dietes leaf and a single bright-pink Anthurium flower. The latter was bought from a florist. I was a bit astonished that, from this view, one might get the impression of a seated figure with very long hair. However, this was not part of the plan at all. This was an arrangement which evolved as I was assembling the elements.

Greetings from Christopher 

23rd May 2026  

DRIED MATERIALS

The last week has given us several days of perfect autumn weather. Warm sunny days with little wind after cooler night time temperatures. Because Torquay is on the south coast of Victoria we are subject to salty winds, particularly when the sea is rough. One of the consequences of this is that northern hemisphere deciduous trees rarely do well. Although our garden has sheltered areas we cannot successfully grow more delicate autumn-colouring plants like maples.

In spite of this issue I set my Geelong senior students the exercise of making an Autumn Ikebana.

Ellie approached the exercise by focusing on the colour of a single yellow flower of one of the prostrate Banksia hybrids. She added some fine wispy pale-yellow dried material. The colour of these light materials was complemented by the gold patterning on the single-footed black vessel.

Jo used Pomegranate Puncia granatum, branches, with fruit attached. Some of the fruit had split, exposing the seeds within. Her vessel had a bottle shape with a double opening which enabled her to create some space within the ikebana.

Maureen used a large branch of Manchurian Pear Pyrus ussuriensis, with a strong, interesting line. Some of its remaining leaves were beginning to change colour. Three unidentified yellow fruit were added at the mouth of the vessel for their colour.

Maree used some stems of beautifully coloured Smoke Bush Cotinus, arranged as rising in a vertical movement. Three small white Chrysanthemums, were set as a low focal point. The open bowl is made of glass, the colour and translucence of which complemented the Smoke Bush leaves.

My ikebana this week is arranged using the Hydrangeas from last week's ikebana. The flowers had dried naturally, changing over a six week period from this...

...to...

...this.

I was amazed at how much of the faded red remained and also noticed that it harmonised beautifully with the blues and pinks in the vase by Pippin Drysdale. To extend the vertical movement of the Hydrangeas mass, I added a dried Agapanthus stem. Its lighter colour also brightened the ikebana.

Greetings from Christopher
17th May 2026