The Embrace

It's always amazing what one can do with old vines found during a walk in the forest. Of course, there is considerable manipulation of the material before it expresses what you want. The founder of the Sogetsu School of Ikebana, Sofu Teshigahara, said, "Capturing nature means making nature into something of your own....one takes a piece of nature and adds something that was not there. This is what creation in Ikebana means."

Imagekind Featured Artist of the Week

I am honored and thrilled that I have been chosen by Imagekind as one of the three "Featured Artists of the Week." I hope this increased exposure will entice those not familiar with Ikebana to visit my galleries and experience this Japanese art form which I love so much.

More Irrisistible Irises

An Iris is an Iris is an Iris?

The iris is one of my favorite flowers to work with. I love its sensuous blossoms and pointed buds. Walking through my garden, the white and purple masses of the early-blooming variety of beard irises are a feast for the eyes. But have you ever inhaled their exotic scent? Hmmm!
I never noticed it until I started to work with them.

Meet The Mulberry Man

The Mulberry Man has led quite an interesting life. I created him in Tokyo while studying for my Sensei degree at the Sogetsu School. His appendages are made of mulberry branches and his head is a cocoon. At one point we had silk worms crawling all over our apartment. From Tokyo, Our Friend moved to France, then to Italy and back to France again. Now, thanks to the Internet, he resides in the blogosphere, too.

Order a print of The Mulbery Man

Figuier de Barbarie

This Ikebana was inspired by the Figuier de Barbarie, a cactus which grows on the steep, rocky slopes that surround our village in the south of France.

Originally from Mexico, where they use it to make tequila, the Figuier de Barbarie grows well in the arid climates here, in Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily and north Africa. It's prickly to work with but I love its wonderful, comical shapes. It has a yellowish- red fruit which is a local delicacy.

The Sogetsu School of Ikebana

The Sogetsu School of Ikebana shaped Baiko's artistic style. The most avant-garde of the Japanese Ikebana schools was started in 1927 as an answer to one man's intense desire to make Ikebana a vehicle for personal artistic expression. That man was the late Sofu Teshigahara (1900-1977), the first Iemoto, or grand master, of the Sogetsu School and he truly revolutionized the world of Japanese flower arranging.

Teshigahara considered Ikebana to be much more than flower arranging. He believed that Ikebana is Art. He said, "the spirit under which the Sogetsu School was born was to create Ikebana that matches actual life and to create something that deserves the name art." He feared that traditional Ikebana would die out unless it adapted to modern times. To survive, he said, "Ikebana has to be always fresh, vital and dynamic."

Here are some quotes from Teshigahara's diary, Kadensho, The Book of Flowers:

Ikebana is born from the encounter of nature and humans; it is the coming together of nature and human life....a clear example of perfect harmony between man and nature....

Ikebana can be done anywhere by anyone. There are no national or ethnic boundaries. Like flowing water or drifting clouds, Ikebana spreads throughout the world....

Just as musicians express themselves through the language of music, Ikebana artists must use the language of flowers....

Ikebana will fail if its ultimate goal is the imitation of nature---even if the imitation is more or less perfect. One cannot just take a piece of it and try to recreate it. One takes a piece of nature and adds something that was not there. This is what creation in Ikebana means.

In Ikebana, the flowers are imbued with a human meaning. They are no longer the flowers of the meadow or the flower shop...the result is an expression of the Ikebana artist.

Sogetsu Ikebana by Baiko

Baiko is the Japanese name of artist Astrid Stadt, Ikebana master (Sensei) of the Sogetsu School of Japan. Baiko means plum blossom, a very revered flower in Japan. White to rose in color, the plum blossom appears in early February, a harbinger of spring. The Japanese admire it for its resilience against the cold of winter. Baiko is a symbol of perseverance in the face of adversity. Astrid received the name Baiko when the Sogetsu School awarded her the title Sensei. All the prints of her creations are stamped with her Baiko seal.