VICTORIAN BRANCH ANNUAL EXHIBITON

This weekend the Victorian Branch of the Sogetsu School of Ikebana held its annual exhibition in the Linen Room of the Abbotsford Convent. The former convent was sold in 1975 and after a period as a campus of La Trobe University is now a  community cultural and arts centre.

The exhibition featured 45 ikebana works by Branch member teachers and some of their students, as well as non-teaching members of the Branch. It was a big undertaking and the resulting exhibition was very pleasing. The layout of the exhibition grouped student work together with the intention of showing a clockwise progression around the space leading to more advanced ikebana by senior members.

An additional feature of the exhibition was the honouring of the bequest of ikebana vessels to the Victorian Branch from the estate of the late teacher, and former Director, Cherie Glaser. Practising teachers were invited to chose one of the vessels in which to set an ikebana arrangement. These ikebana works were grouped together in the centre of the room against Shoji screens as shown in the photo above.

This photo shows a group of ikebana where the exhibitors were using their own vessels. 

Senior members were given the option of making two ikebana arrangements.

This is my second ikebana in a Japanese vessel that I had bought from Cherie some years earlier. I have used Bushy Yate Eucalyptus lehmannii with three stages of flower formation: operculum-covered buds, open flowers, and developing seed pods. The latter are against the front surface of the vessel and have yellow spikes.

My first ikebana was made in one of the bequeathed vessels, and was made by the Victorian ceramic artist John Stroomer. In his career of almost 50 years he has developed a great skill in creating crystalline glazes, in this case a very subtle pale blue.  The ikebana I created used what must be the last of Elizabeth's budding Magnolia and a leafy branch of Oak. In the centre between the contrasting branches is a small mass of pale pink to white Helichrysum flowers.  

I will eventually provide a link to further photos of the exhibition.

Greetings from Christopher
2nd October 2023