THE introduction of Buddhism to Japan in the sixth century planted something in the country other than religion. For hundreds of years, priests offered floral offerings to Buddha at altar of temples that consisted of three main stems gathered closely at the base and rose from the water as one, representing the harmonious relationship between heaven, man and Earth.
There were no rules used to make the arrangements until the 15th century, when Ikenobo Senkei, a Buddhist priest, created the earliest form of Ikebana, or the Japanese art of flower arrangement. Ikebana was eventually displayed in the homes of the aristocracy and soon evolved from a sacred religious offering to public home décor.
Since then, Ikebana has branched out to thousands of schools in Japan and all over the world. One of which is Sogetsu, founded in 1927 by Sofu Teshigahara as a revolutionary avante-garde response to the restrictive, rules-based principle of Ikebana.
The Sogetsu School of Ikebana was created to give the arranger more freedom of expression and interpretation over his work, from choice of material to overall design, with the belief that anyone can arrange Ikebana “anywhere, any time and with anything.”
Today, the Sogetsu School has over 200 branches and study groups with over a million students and followers worldwide, including the Philippines. Sogetsu School Manila was formed in 1989 and recently celebrated its 30th anniversary at Uptown Mall with a four-day exhibit, titled Flower Focus.
“We have two schools only that are very active here in the Philippines: Ikenobo, the very first school, and then Sogetsu School, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary,” said Ikebana International Manila Chapter President Tin Abalos.
The event consisted of demonstrations by Sogetsu teachers and an exhibit that displayed rows and rows of modern arrangements from students. The creations ranged from a modest challenge to the traditional to the totally radical.
An example of the latter are a couple of works by former Ikebana International Manila Chapter President Marc Tomas. His engineering background was featured prominently in an arrangement that was inspired by scaffolding with protruding colored bamboo sticks over cracked pottery.
“There’s a lot of movement, lots of freedom of expression,” Tomas said. “I wanted to show something young and vibrant, and to incorporate construction with restoration through the damaged pottery. I love imperfections.”
Sogetsu School Manila head Margot Perez, meanwhile, had one vertical arrangement in the exhibit that centered on a varnished tree leaf. She said the freedom to choose any material is one of the beauties of Sogetsu.
“I remember being invited for a class in Cagayan de Oro,” she recalled. “The flowers were delivered, but the vases did not arrive. So we went to the kitchen and got pitchers, glasses, cups and saucers and we used those.”
The students part of the exhibit had different answers as to how Sogetsu affects their lives. The one constant, however, is the way they gushed about the level of fulfillment from each creation.
“I was asked about what do I get from doing arrangements,” said Bella Pilapil, sister of renowned sculptor Impy, “I, too, asked myself the same question, because the pieces wilt after a week, at most, and we can’t really sell our art like other artists such as painters. But I realized that the reason I do it is for self-gratification; that I am able to create something beautiful.”
For student Neny Regino, Sogetsu is an escape, as she found refuge in the artform after her husband passed away.
“I was in a moment of depression and extreme grief and sorrow,” she said. “But when I’m arranging, I forget all my worries, I forget everything. It’s just about me, my flowers and my vase.”