Flower Arrangement: The Ikebana Way

Though an ancient art in Japan, the Ikebana way of arranging flowers is as beautiful, refreshing and decorative in a modern American home as in its traditional Japanese setting. With hundreds of photographs and diagrams, the Headmasters of the three main Ikebana schools -- Ikenobo, Ohara and Sogetsu -- present precise instruction in the fine art of floral decoration, explain their diverse approaches, and show how color, shape and the texture of flowers are used to harmonize the laws of nature and humanity and still instill meaning with beauty into each arrangement. More than merely 'decoration,' the Ikebana way of flower arranging encourages the arranger to fully express himself by infusing each arrangement with a sense of space, motion, time past and future, season, rhythm, and emotion. This concise history presents clearly and simply the remote origins, philosophical basis, and tradition of Ikebana, and serves as a comprehensive and authoritative basis for its appreciation and practice. A serious Ikebana arranger induces cut flowers and branches to look natural and 'living' in an unnatural environment to express the beauty of nature, enhanced by the arranger's message of joy, love or condolence.