Traditional Japanese flower-arranging art on exhibit

Artists trained in ikebana, the Japanese art of floral arrangement, will be featured at the Tully-Levine Gallery during this week’s Second Saturday ArtWalk. The exhibit is called Flower Power.

The artists are members of St. Pete’s Chapter 65 of Ikebana International, an organization with groups in over 40 countries that’s dedicated to the promotion and appreciation of ikebana.

The St. Pete chapter celebrates its 64th anniversary next year, making it one of the oldest groups in the United States. With over 70 members, representing five distinct schools of ikebana, it’s also one of the largest and most active in the country.

Alongside calligraphy and tea ceremony, ikebana, which translates roughly to “bringing flowers to life,” is one of the three great Japanese traditional art forms. Though its exact history is unknown, most people believe it was started around 600 years ago by Buddhist priests making flower arrangements as offerings to the gods. Initially practiced exclusively by men (think Buddhist monks, cultural elites and samurais), it has since evolved and expanded globally.

Gretchen Ward Warren.

“There are now between 3,000 to 4,000 recognized schools in Japan, and five or six main ones, which are represented in our chapter,” explains Gretchen Ward Warren, a member of the local chapter for over 20 years and a certified ikebana instructor.  “It became something that women could do, and now, a part of any woman’s good upbringing is to learn how to do ikebana. And of course, the geishas do ikebana.

“At one point, the samurai warriors practiced the art, and they said that it helped to bring them a kind of peace and focus before they went to battle.”

While the curricula of the various academies differ, the fundamental aesthetics of the practice are the same.

Warren elaborated: “The traditional characteristics of ikebana are minimalism. We say we like to have enough space within an arrangement for the birds to fly through it. In a good arrangement, line is terribly important, and the line of the arrangement is usually established by the greenery. So you’ll put in three different stems. Every school has different names for those three stems but always three. We do not ever use the number four, because that’s associated with death in Japan.”

Work by Sybille Ruschmeier.

St. Pete’s Chapter 65 gathers on the third Monday of the month at Lealman Exchange to hone in their craft through peer-led learning and workshops led by experienced teachers. Meetings involve instruction, cultural study, group governance, shared practice – and a communal lunch. The chapter welcomes new members interested in studying the discipline and certified instructors are available to serve as teachers to train newcomers in the basic tenets of the art form.

The group exhibits their work at events, galleries, and museums throughout the year. They’re featured artists at the annual Art in Bloom event at the Museum of Fine Arts, and they have participated in events at the Sunken Gardens and the Imagine Museum.

The biggest event is their yearly chapter exhibition, which will take place in January at the Quak Center in St. Petersburg.

Work by Jeanne Houlton.

While many of the members enjoy displaying their works at juried shows and have a shared love of ikebana, Warren explains that what brings the group together is something larger. She spoke about the 92-year old member of the chapter who was “washed out” during last year’s hurricane and the way that the artists rallied to her side to help her rebuild.

While the artform brings them together, Warren said, “It’s really about the camaraderie.”

For more information about the local chapter, including upcoming workshops, meetings, and cultural programming, visit the website.

Flower Power also includes flower paintings by Carrie Jadus, Jenipher Chandley, Jenny Bleackly, Janie Haskins, Jennie Cohen and Denise Cormier Mahoney.

The exhibition opens Saturday (Dec. 13) from 5-9 p.m. at the Tully-Levine Gallery, in the Arts Xchange on the Warehouse Arts District campus.

The works will be on display until Jan. 28.

Map of galleries and studios participating in the Dec. 13 Second Saturday ArtWalk.