SOGETSU IKEBANA SCHOOL TO PROVIDE DEMONSTRATION JULY 20

The Sogetsu Ikebana Los Angeles Branch, one of the three local Japanese flower arranging schools creating and maintaining installations as part of the Japanese American National Museum’s exhibition, Living Flowers: Ikebana and Contemporary Art, will give a demonstration on Sunday, July 20, beginning at 2 p.m., at the National Museum in Little Tokyo.

Living Flowers is an innovative exhibition that features traditional Japanese flower arrangements by the masters of Ikenobo, Ohara and Sogetsu schools of ikebana along with cutting-edge contemporary art by such well known artists as Isamu Noguchi and Robert Mapplethorpe. Each of the schools is creating and maintaining four arrangements for the length of the exhibition, which runs through September 7.

The Sogetsu School was founded by Sofu Teshigahara (1900-1979) in 1927. The Sogetsu style stresses individual creativity and experimentation over the set traditional forms and styles. Sofu expanded ikebana from its traditional settings into contemporary spaces. He believed that ikebana could be practiced by anyone, any place and with any materials. Noguchi collaborated with Teshigahara on creating vessels for ikebana and one of his works is on display.

The Ikenobo Ikebana Society of Los Angeles has previously demonstrated. and the Ohara School of Ikebana Los Angeles Chapter will present on Sunday, August 24, at 2 p.m. All these programs are free to National Museum members or with general admission. For more information, call the Japanese American National Museum at (213) 625-0414.