Ikebana is born from the interaction between nature and humans. The path of Ikebana is the connection between human life and the life of nature. Ikebana can be created anywhere by anyone. It has no nations or national borders; it flows throughout the world like river currents and the breath of the wind.

Sofu Teshigahara
Founder of the Sogetsu School of Ikebana

Ikebana – First Steps

I remember my astonishment after my first Ikebana lesson at the Sogetsu school. I had always thought that in Ikebana and other forms of art, we imitate nature. But how surprised and enlightened I was to discover that while creating a composition, we express our own character and arrange the flowers according to our own needs, often unexpectedly and radically altering their natural state. I still ponder on this and continue to find new ways to express plants, objects, and their combinations within the context of place and time.

The path reveals itself beneath the footsteps of the wanderer.

In this infinite beauty of the moment, there is an enchantment that fills every moment of life with emotions and everything that can be called life in the broadest sense.

The grandest phenomena hold no guarantees or clear predictions. Among them are deep experiences of love or unconditional happiness, freedom of thought and self-expression, as well as moments of genius and exquisite simplicity. However, there are clear steps that one must continue to take in order to eventually experience all of this and make it their personal knowledge and experience.

For me, Ikebana is one form of art that brings me closer to these understandings.