PANDOREA PANDORANA

Last week I posted photos from the Sogetsu School, Victorian Branch's Annual Exhibition which was held in conjunction with the Wa Ikebana Festival. I included a photo of my ikebana demonstration of the first exercise in the Sogetsu curriculum. The other demonstrators made ikebana revealing the variety of the Sogetsu style and demonstrating different techniques.

Angeline Lo split one of the Strelitzia leaves to reveal the partially obscured orchids in her ikebana. This an example of "changing the appearance of the material".

Aileen Duke's spring ikebana was a demonstration of one of the fixing techniques used when arranging in a "tsubo" (spherical) vase. The technique is a way to stabilise the long branches that extend to each side of the ikebana,

As Susan Healey created this ikebana, she illustrated the importance of open space in ikebana by removing a large part of the branch on the left of this work. The ikebana has vibrancy because of the carefully controlled space between the two structural elements of the ikebana.

Lara Telford demonstrated the use of "unconventional material" (man-made) in ikebana. She used a branch with long curving lines that created a sculptural form. Having prepared the branch in advance Lara wrapped the lines with strands of variously coloured wool. Two leaves of fresh material were added to bring the ikebana to life. 

Last week I posted a photo of the second version of my ikebana. It included a main mass made with orange Ranunculus and blue Dutch Iris. 

The first version of the ikebana included wonga-vine, Pandorea pandorana, from the fence in our garden. This turned out to be unfortunate as the flowers dropped if the ikebana was even slightly touched. 

This is my original version of the ikebana which I preferred because of the colour harmony. Also, I think the cascading line of Pandorea flowers helps connect the elements of the vase and Birchwood structure. In retrospect, I think the Kiwi vine is redundant to the overall design. Such are the second thoughts that often occur the day after the completion of an ikebana.

Greetings from Christopher
17th September 2022