Bev Tall, our sensei for this workshop, has been studying Ikenobo for over 10 years. She also finds time to be an international orchid show judge and world traveler.
On Saturday, February 16, the 19 students in attendance were glad she was in town to show us how to put together a Futakabu-ike (two-group) arrangement. We learned that Futakabu-ike differs from a regular shoka because there are two divided plant material groups: in this case, land and water. The land group consists of a shin, soe and tai-za (not a real tai, but a lightly arranged portion suggesting where tai would be if this were a single-group shoka). The water group consists of tai shin, tai and soe- za (not a real soe, but…).
Now, add a stone to the land group to make it seem as if we are looking across the water to see the land plants on the far side of the scene. The myrtle branches and iris that Bev brought conveyed this concept to perfection. We can thank Bev for staying in Scottsdale long enough to do a demonstration and then critique all our arrangements. Happy travels, Bev.