Ikebana at the Rochester, NY 2023 Orchid Show
From March 31st to April 2nd, the Genesee Region Orchid Society had its annual orchid show at the RMSC Eisenhart Museum at 657 East Avenue, Rochester, NY. At the event, orchids were exhibited and also on sale. The activities included ribbon and AOS awards judging as well as public presentations of helpful and interesting information about orchids and how to grow them.
At the show, the Ikebana International Rochester Chapter 53 was invited to display orchid arrangements from four different schools (Hijiri Ikenobo, Ichiyo, Ohara, and Sogetsu schools of ikebana). They are presented here for your enjoyment and possibly to entice you to look further at taking up the art of ikebana or growing orchids.
In this Hijiri Ikenobo arrangement, one notices the natural bamboo container with openings in the top and bottom portion which allows for two different, but related arrangements. This type of compound arrangement is not an uncommon way of presenting floral materials, though in different schools the largest arrangement may be placed differently. For example, in the Ichiyo School of Ikebana the larger arrangement is on top with the smaller arrangement on the bottom.
This second Hijiri Ikenobo arrangement uses another kind of container known as a “Moon” container due to its spherical shape. This is a type of container which is used in other schools as well. And in this arrangement as the one above it, a shikimono (a type of matting) is also used to set off the arrangement. Other schools use shikimonos also. In this arrangement the container takes on a more important role than simply holding the floral materials. The opening of the container as well as the presence of the rounded shape must be taken into consideration when placing the floral materials which need to be complimentary, and in harmony with the rounded container.
In this Ichiyo School of Ikebana arrangement, we see a clear glass container. This school of ikebana has as part of its curriculum teachings on how to make arrangements with glass containers–clear or otherwise. In Western floral arrangements, many times the cut ends of the stems of the flowers are seen simply stuck into the container. However, in the Ichiyo School of Ikebana, the part of the arrangement in the glass container is just as important as what is out of it. In other words, what the viewer sees in the water of the container should be just as attractive as what is outside. In the Hijiri ikenobo arrangements above, there is a weighted needle holder (kenzan) for the plant materials in the containers. However, in this Ichiyo arrangement, there is no such item. The curling wooden material is not only being used to hold the flowers and leaf, but also adds an interesting and aesthetic touch to the arrangement. It is important to note that one does not see any cut plant stems in the glass container. They are just below the water line, but person making this arrangement made sure that they are hidden from sight.
In this Ohara School of Ikebana arrangement, one can also see the use of the shikimono (matting) which was used in both of the Hijiri Ikenobo arrangements, but not in the Ichiyo arrangement. However, this shikimono is of a different materials than what was used in the Hijiri Ikenobo arrangements. The shikimonos used with arrangements can be almost anything, but it has to compliment the arrangement. In this arrangement also, another object is used to add interest–the tea kettle. Adding non-floral objects to the overall arrangement is seen in other schools such as the Chiko School of Ikebana and the Shinpa Seizan School.
This second Ohara arrangement, a long thin vase is used. This also does not use a kenzan to hold materials. There are various techniques used to hold the floral materials in vases. One such method is to use a kubari or an “X” shaped wooden device made from wedging two pieces of a branch, one on top of the other, against the walls of the vase to form the “X.” But, there are many other ways to hold floral materials and what is used can differ among schools. This arrangement can also be called a contrast arrangement in that the materials on one side of the arrangement is different from the other. This adds interest by not making the arrangement exactly symmetrical which would be less interesting. This arrangement also uses a shikimono similar to the black ones used with the Hijiri Ikenobo arrangements.
This Sogetsu School of Ikebana arrangement, a more rounded vase containers is used. It can be called an asymmetric arrangement in that the curved willow branches reach out further than the yellow orchid flowers. But yet, even though the yellow orchid flowers don’t reach out as far as the willow branches, their bright color and solid grouping visually balances the thin, long-reaching willow branches. And the dark green orchid leaves add a touch more weight to the center. Also in this arrangement, another shikimono is used though interestingly enough, a clear glass one. All the other shikimonos were square or rectangular in shape. However, this one is round which matches well the roundness of the vase.
