Earlier this year I took a morning class at Meijer Gardens on Ikebana – the art, study and philosophy of Japanese Flower Design. I have wanted for some time to learn about Ikebana and this was my first opportunity. After the class I asked our instructor for more information on how and where to study Ikebana. She emailed me a list of several books about Ikebana plus some contact resources. One contact, Ilse Beunen, offered an online e-newsletter so I signed up to receive it.
Ilse Beunen, who lives in Belgium, is a world renown Ikebana designer and teacher. During the month of July, she offered to teach a four week Introductory Ikebana class via ZOOM to only six students. I GOT IN! Each Monday at Noon Eastern Time (6:00pm Belgium time) the six students from around the world gathered in front of our respective computers to see Ilse demonstrate a design which we then “replicated” at our end. We were given advance instructions of what floral materials and vase(s) to have ready to use. Ilse was able to see our work and offer constructive comments during our sessions via ZOOM. We each also emailed pictures of our designs to Ilse so she could share them with all of us. Here are my four designs…each represent a different technique that Ilse wanted us experience.
Week One: Design using flat floral materials floating over a shallow vase of water to create a sense of calm and reflection – Shasta Daisy and Hosta Leaves from my garden.
Week Two: Arrangement using multiple vases and kitchen forks to link together the leaves and vases into an unified design. Plant materials include pink Dahlia, pink Alstroemeria, yellow and lime-green Button Mums and Daylily leaves.
Week Three: Traditional tall vase design focusing on interior structure using a criss-cross of sturdy stems below the inside rim of the vase. Plant materials include Limelight Hydrangea branches and assorted Daylilies from my garden..
Week Four: Our final project was to incorporate “paper” into the design. I used silver foil Christmas wrapping paper torn into pieces to emulate leaves. A long white branch was used as support and white pipe cleaners tied the paper to the branch. Floral material include a deep pink Dahlia blossom, pink Astilbe, Limelight Hydrangea blossoms and Hosta leaves – all from my garden.