Sogetsu Ikebana School (Sogetsu Kaikan)

Sogetsu Ikebana School (Sogetsu Kaikan) Review

The schools of Ikebana, like those of other traditional arts, are highly stratified organizations. Students rise through levels of proficiency, paying handsomely for lessons and certifications as they go, until they can become teachers themselves. At the top of the hierarchy is the iemoto, the head of the school, a title usually held within a family for generations. The Sogetsu school of flower arrangement is a relative newcomer to all this. It was founded by Sofu Teshigahara in 1927, and, compared to the older schools, it espouses a style flamboyant, free-form, and even radical. Introductory lessons in flower arrangement are given in English on Monday from 10 to noon. Reservations must be made a day in advance. The main hall of the Sogetsu Kaikan, created by the late Isamu Noguchi, one of the masters of modern sculpture, is well worth a visit. Sogetsu Kaikan is a 10-minute walk west on Aoyama-dori from the Akasaka-mitsuke intersection or east from the Aoyama-itchome subway stop.