Links to Pittsburgh Ikebana Schools
and Ikebana International Headquarters
The Pittsburgh Chapter of Ikebana International includes five schools of design:
Ichiyo, Ikenobo, Keika-Kazan, Ohara, and Sogetsu.
Ichiyo School
https://www.ichiyo-ikebana-school.com/e/
Ichiyo means "one leaf" in Japanese and refers to the school's logo. The school's concept is to teach students to make arrangements that fit the environment in which they are displayed and to express the individual's emotions and character. It encourages personal interpretation and imagination and posits that if flower arranging is to be truly fulfilling, it should be a reflection of "oneself." Imagination and feeling are as important as creative design and proper selection of material and container. It is not just a flower in a vase; it is an art of human communication.
Ikenobo School
https://www.ikenobopittsburgh.org/
The origin of Ikebana began with Ikenobo more than 500 years ago. In the mid-1300s, flowers were being used indoors as Buddhist offerings by priests who resided at the Rokkakudo, and ancient temple in the center of Kyoto, Japan. Around the period of the shogun, documents record a gathering to admire flowers arranged by Senkei Ikenobo. That was the first recorded Ikebana. The family name Ikenobo refers to the hut (bo) of a priest at the edge of a pond (ike). Changes over the centuries in customs and living environments are reflected in the evolution of Ikenobo's Ikebana styles. Today's style includes "rikka," "shoka," and the especially modern "free style."
Keika-Kazan School
https://www.keika-kazanschool.org
The school of Keika-Kazan, meaning "scenic flowers," was founded by Bunga Tanuma in 1930. The concept is to arrange materials in order to evoke natural scenes such as streams, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, or any other natural element. Three key elements of this style are flowers, branches, and burnished mulberry wood — all three are used in combination to create a sense of place.
Ohara School
Unshin Ohara founded the Ohara School, a style that celebrates the beauty of natural scenery. While many Ikebana masters of the early 1900s rejected using imported Western flowers, Ohara embraced them. Ohara school arrangements are seasonal and evoke views of moutains, fields and gardens. Hiroki Ohara, a descendent of Unshin, is the current headmaster of this school that boasts more than one million students worldwide.
Sogetsu School
"Flowers becomes human in Ikebana"- Sofu Teshigahara. Sofu Teshigahara founded the Sogetsu School in 1927. He questioned the way existing Ikebana principles placed so much emphasis on form so he created a school which encouraged to respect the freedom of individual expression. The school has spread worldwide with the motto "Sogetsu Ikebana can be arranged whenever, wherever, with any materials in any container by anybody."
Ikebana International (Headquarters)
Workshop Information of Each School
Ichiyo School
Time:
The 3rd Thursdays at 9:30am - 12:30pm
Place:
Butler Country Club
310 Country Club Rd, Butler, PA 16002
Contact Person:
Lauren Mangino
Email: laurenmangino@aol.com
Ikenobo
Time:
The 3rd Tuesday of each month except for September when we have a visiting professor from Japan each year
9:30 am - 2:30 pm
Place:
First United Methodist Church in Shadyside
5402 center Ave. Pittsburg, PA. 15232
Contact Person:
Sono Hayes
Email: sonohayes@gmail.com
Keika-Kazan School
Time will be arranged.
Place:
2233 William Penn Highway, Pittsburgh, PA 15235
Contact Person:
Motoko Hattori
Email: kazanryu.mh@gmail.com
Ohara School
Time and Place will be arranged.
Sogetsu Pittsburgh Study Group
Dates:
April 26, May 24, June 28, July 26, August 23, September 27, October 25, November 15, December 13
Time:
10:00am-1:00pm
Place:
Ice House Studios
100 43rd Street, Studio #101 Pittsburgh PA, 15201
Contact person:
Brittany Reilly
Email:
reilly.k.britt@gmail.com
About Us
Friendship through Flowers
Contact Us
ikebanapittsburgh@gmail.com
© 2019