Haiku is a short form of poetry originating in Japan which typically uses common language and simple uncomplicated images to convey emotion. A haiku poem is the sharing of a moment of sensory illumination which carries a subtle yet often profound emotional resonance. Ikebana uses carefully selected blossoms, greenery, and other flora to convey a specific feeling or emotion to an observer – just as a haiku, painting or sculpture might.

In a slide show I will show examples of different forms of haiku bringing this ancient form into current practice. In Japan, haiku are traditionally written as a single line, while haiku in English often appear as three lines, although variations exist. The 5/7/5 rule was made up for school children to understand and learn this type of poetry. I will share some of my recent haiku and haiga which have been published in journals. Haiku and visual art in combination are called haiga. This form is the closest to what we will be doing in combining our arrangements with haiku.

I will also create one arrangement and write a haiku.

October 22 Workshop

Fee: No charge

In this workshop you will have the opportunity to get inspired by your own creative spirit and marry two Japanese inspired art forms. Bring your own gathered materials and container. You can select a haiku online and create an arrangement inspired by the haiku expressing something that touches your emotions. Or think about something you would like to celebrate for example, a birthday, anniversary, holiday, etc. and write your own haiku. Finally, we will have fun sharing our creations.

In the image I was thinking about Ukraine. The white stork is their national bird.

photo by Norma Bradley - "white stork walks for peace"

Sticks and Stones may hurt your bones… but they are fun for ikebana. Patti will gather various sticks and stones and use them to create interesting ikebana. The possibilities are limitless.

March 25 Workshop

Fee: No charge

Gather your own sticks and stones and bring your materials to create a fun arrangement to share with the group. It will be interesting to see everyone’s creativity for this theme.
 

I will be doing Moribana -Landscape arrangements. Moribana - Landscape arrangements are the backbone
of the Ohara School. The demonstration will include the three perspective
views of landscape arrangements, far view, middle view and near view.

April 22 Workshop

Fee: $10 to be donated to the Folk Art Center

The workshop will continue the theme for the day which will be simple Moribana - Landscape arrangements. Members participating will bring their own plant materials of which I will give suggestions. These will be mostly from their grounds
with a few flowers that they will need to purchase at their local venue and will be
simple to find. I will keep in mind grocery stores and such for this.

May 27 Workshop

Ikebana arrangements showcase the different characteristics of contrast and harmony. Thick/thin, big/small, sharp/soft, etc. We will explore these contrasting characteristics of the plant material and highlight their unique qualities using seasonal material from the garden.

July 22 Workshop

Fee: $15 Class limited to 15 students

I will focus on current trends in the Ichiyo School of Ikebana based on the fourth headmaster Naohiro Kasuya’s monthly online lessons for instructors since 2020.

No Workshop
 

An overview of Ikenobo Styles highlighting plant materials from our region.

October 28 Workshop