Ikebana
Ikebana is one of the most famed Japanese traditional arts, and traces its origin back hundreds of years. Ikebana was historically placed within the “tokonoma” alcove of the Japanese home. Now it is practiced in most of the contemporary world as an artistic decoration placed throughout the home.
In its basic form, an Ikebana arrangement follows a fixed pattern: a triangle of three points representing Heaven, Earth and Human. From there, many other guidelines are taught depending on the flower and branch material used. Ikebana usually contains the foliage and flowers of the season at hand, used in their natural state, except when arrangers enhance the beauty with trimmings.
Today, there are numerous schools of Ikebana, each following a particular set of rules and arranging techniques. The Ikebana Teachers Federation consists of seven different schools and will display works at the Cherry Blossom Festival of leading teachers throughout the Bay Area.(Web)
