Roadside Ikebana

My name is Christopher James. I am an accredited ikebana teacher and practitioner of the Sogetsu School and hold the Komon teaching certificate.

I have lived on the Surf Coast of Victoria Australia since childhood and find my ikebana is inspired by the natural beauty of the coast and hinterland.

In 1992 I spent four months in Japan where I took my first formal lessons in ikebana.

Subsequently I spent three months studying at the Sogetsu Headquarters in Tokyo in 2011, having been awarded a scholarship by the Norman and Mary Sparnon Endowment Foundation. That time was the most extraordinary privilege, which enormously enriched my understanding of the art ikebana in particular and Japanese culture in general.

I have been teaching ikebana for ten years. In association with Graeme Wilkie, at the Qdos Gallery, Lorne I facilitated collaborative exhibitions of ikebana and ceramics, between 2004 and 2013. These exhibitions involved a number of ikebana artists as well as the team at the Qdos Studio. Because of the natural fit between ikebana and ceramics these exhibitions contributed to the artistic development of all the artists involved.