IKEBANA WITH ROSES

 

There have been some richly colourful sunsets recently which have been pleasant to enjoy as the season changes to late summer.

I caught this moment looking a Bird Rock on Jan Juc Beach just after the sun had set. The tide was low, leaving wet sand that reflected the evening sky.

Last Monday I had a chance to walk around the Royal Botanic Gardens - Melbourne, and made a point of visiting the Herbaceous Border. 

It is quite wonderful to see the display of abundance at this time of year when all the plants are flourishing.

The Herbaceous Border is situated in front of the Old Director's Residence. At the bottom of this photo is a mass of pink Sedum, probably "Autumn Joy".

Here is the small patch of "Autumn Joy" growing in our garden. The colour is a little richer, perhaps because it does not get full sun all day.

Last week I showed the ikebana of some students whom I had asked to make an Ikebana Variation No 3 from the Sogetsu  curriculum.  This example was completed by Aileen.

The second element of the task was then to use the same material and vessel to make a freestyle ikebana.

My own ikebana this week was made at the first meeting this year of Ikebana International Melbourne Chapter which was held on 10th February.

The guest speaker at the meeting was Dr. Jacinta Burke a rose specialist and Past President of the Rose Society of Victoria. As is customary, members were asked to make an ikebana on the theme of the meeting.

None of the roses in our garden were flowering so I bought some from the South Melbourne Market. I was delighted to find that they had a lovely fragrance. The roses may be "Earth Angel", bred by David Austin. I arranged three stems of Corky Elm to one side of a spherical vase and set two roses as a central focal point. The few rose leaves give a feeling of freshness to the ikebana.

The vase was made in Australia by the late Japanese ceramicist Shigeo Shiga who worked in Australia 1966 - 1979.

Here is a link to the Ikebana International Melbourne Instagram account, for other images from the meeting.

Greetings from Christopher
23rd February 2025