IKEBANA AT HOME

I was very surprised to see a large number of under-7 and under-8 year old school children on the beach this morning. The cool wind from the south was moderate and it had made the surf quite choppy. I had just put on a rain-proof jacket as light rain had started.

The children were attending a summer program that teaches water safety, and was being run by the Surf Life Saving Club.  

It was reassuring to see that the children were being closely supervised by a proportionately large number of fully qualified surf rescue teachers as well as parents. I noticed that the program had obviously been modified for the day's poor weather conditions.

Now to the world of Ikebana. This week my Geelong students held an end-of-year social gathering, which at the last minute I found I was able to attend. The gathering was held for the first time at Jo's house and the students brought along food to share. Some of the students brought materials to set up "Ikebana at home". It is always a pleasant challenge to make ikebana in an unfamiliar environment. On this occasion I took the photographs against a plain wall so that the ikebana was easier to see.

Christine set a single Strelitzia Nicolai inflorescence in a cast iron, boat-shaped bowl. The bowl showed off the Strelitzia's subtle colours as well as its dramatic form.

Jo arranged two red-painted bare branches to which she added ropes of red beads for a "Christmas touch". The focal point included a branch of pine, a single arum lily Zantedeschia aethiopica  and a white Agapanthus.

Maree set a branch of Mediterranean Cypress Cupressus sempervirens vertically in a suiban and added three white painted dried Lotus pods and a stem of red Asiatic lily. 

  

   

Ellie used a clear glass cube into which she arranged an Aspidistra leaf below the water and a single white Chrysanthemum flower floating on the surface. A deep red glass bauble was attached to the Aspidistra stem.

I participated in the exercise also. However, I have re-set and photographed my Ikebana at home. Because of the relative abundance of Strelitzia flowers in the garden this year I was interested in the idea of making a mass with flower heads only. Using five flowers each pointing in a different direction, I set the flowers on the left side of the vessel's opening. In recognition of the end-of-year celebration and approaching holiday season, I added a sheet of gold-coloured foil. I liked the colour harmony of the foil. However, I lost the rather attractive space on that side.

The vessel was made by a friend and Ikebana colleague from Sydney, Margaret Hall who, as you can see, is also a talented ceramicist.

Greetings from Christopher

10th December 2023