BARK and BANKSIA PRAEMORSA

This week, I gave my Torquay students the exercise of making an ikebana using pine and any other material.

Coralie used two of the Three Friends of Winter; in this case Bamboo and Pine, no Plum Blossom. The red artificial material (plastic-coated wire) had a structural as well as decorative function, as it helped secure the pine in position.

Lyn arranged curving stems of African flag Chasmanthe floribunda, in a suiban. She then added a small mass of Radiata pine Pinus radiata, at the base of the ikebana.

Pamela used pine, possibly Himalayan cedar Cedrus deodara. The dead branch on the right front is the same material, but was encrusted with pale green lichen. For colour contrast Pamela added an unidentified Acacia.

Last Tuesday the AGM of Ikebana International Melbourne was held. As is customary practice, the Heads of various Ikebana Schools in Victoria gave a simultaneous demonstration of their work. Each Head of School then spoke about the significance of their ikebana.

As the Director of the Sogetsu School of Ikebana, Victorian Branch, Aileen Clarke made an ikebana using Mountain Pine Pinus mugo and Camellia "Brushfields yellow".

This is Aileen's completed arrangement. When talking about her ikebana, for which she used three black metal vessels, Aileen told the members that next year is the 100th anniversary of the Sogetsu School's founding by Sofu Teshigahara. There is a coded message here!

The members attending the meeting were asked to complete an "ikebana of your own choice".

This is my ikebana, for which I had chosen bark as my principal material. Over some months I had noticed this large single piece of bark caught up in a tree, on our regular walk along the creek to the cricket oval. During the previous week, I realised that the bark had flattened out following some heavy rain. This change revealed more of the inner surface, which is a warm brown. The upper surface of the bark is a light mottled grey with a fairly smooth texture. These characteristics particularly appealed to me. I bought some yellow Banksia praemorsa to contrast with the bark and add the freshness of living material. The sweeping curve of the bark when arranged in this curving vessel was able to produce an overall continuous "S" curve.  

I reset the ikebana when I came home and found, in the process, that it worked better in this opposite orientation. It is the angle that is seen when coming into the living room from the front entrance.

This is the view straight on. 

Recently, I had the wide shelf made for the wall where our gas heater used to stand prior to the replacement of our colourbond roof in July (winter!) last year.

I am really pleased to now have a blank wall against which I will be able to place more spreading ikebana arrangements.

Greetings from Christopher

15th August 2026