I would like to post the article about Ikebana(Japanese flower arrangement) I wrote for "The Asian Herald" (January 2004, issue).
Today amongst the various traditional Japanese forms of art perhaps Ikebana is the most famous and actively practiced.When we trace its origin it goes back hundreds of years, into the medieval times. Yet it is still widely accepted, and used in the contemporary world of art and decoration.
Ikebana was started in the sixteenth century during the Azuchi Momoyama period. This use of fresh flowers had its origin in a tokonoma(alove) in a Japanese room as a piece of decoration to compliment the traditional tea ceremory. Then tea ceremony was performed as a formal ritual amongst the ruling samurai class.
Hawever, by the time of the Edo period(17th century) flower arrangement had become much more widely accepted, even bythe common people. A variety of schools appeared following the particular life styles of , each school of Ikebana still retains its own peculiar set of rules and arranging techniques. They nevertheless adhere to and share the fundamentals of the art.
In reading the December, 2003 issue of the Asian Herald, I share the same sentiment as expressed by Ms. Yoshimo Osakada when she wrote, "Living indifferent countries gives me an opportunity to see things, especially those which I thought were natural, from a different point of view." We take so much for granted when we are at home in our own country.
I have now been away from Japan for eighteen years of which seventeen were spent in tropical Singapore. But while living in Japan whenever I saw fresh flower arrangements in the tokonoma of my parents' house or in a department store window or in the lobby of a hotel, I just thought, 'oh, how pretty! " It was only after I went overseas that I came to realize that Ikebana is a deeply entreched part of traditional Japanese culture. Since then I became more interestested and involved.
Today I am a certified instructor of a major school of Ikebana, the Sogetsu School. For sixteen years I learned and practiced under the founder of the Singapore branch of the Sogetsu School, Mrs. Kazue Kato Kim. In Singapore every year Mrs. Kim holds an exhibition of her students' works at the Grand Hyatte Hotel and raises money for charity. In Japann as well as in Singapore the students and participants are not limited to women. Many of them are men. As Singapore is a multirace country with nationals from all over the world living and working there, the exhibition participants are not limited to Japanese but includes Chinese, Indians, Philippinos, Indonesians, peope from South Africa, Germany, France and Finland. Their works of art therefore, also reflect their different backgrounds often very individualistic and not necessarily reflecting Japanese tradion and value. In my opinion this added variety further enriches Sogetsu type of flower arrangement. Mrs. Kim always goes out of her way to remind us to be individualistic and different while maintaining the traditional Sogetsu principles.
From November 6 to 11, 2003 the annual Sogetsu International Flower Exhibition was held in tokyo. Along with about seven hundred other participands I also partook in it. It was quite an experience because I was coming from overseas and needed to make arrangements for the tools and fresh flowers to arrive on time for the show. For most of us we needed a couple of hours to finish each of own production. For the masters whose designs were bigger and more intricate, they needed three hours or more to complete. I was very much overwhelmed by everybody's enthusiasm and dedication. To be able to take part in this few centries old tradition and exhibition, to witness a part of Japanese culture being adapted to meet the needs and experictations of the modern world, is something extremely exciting and rewarding. I shall remember it for a long time.
