The Noguchi Museum Celebrates the Japanese Art of Ikebana

We tend to associate the word "bloom" with springtime, when all those daffodils, lilacs, tulips and cherry blossoms re-emerge from their winter hibernation and once again beautify our existence for two or three months, depending on your particular geography.

Yet fall has always personally been our favorite season, especially for its magnificent colors (and okay, for the pumpkin spice lattes). So we were certainly thrilled to learn of The Noguchi's Museum's special October event 'Autumn in Bloom: Flowers, Seasons and the Art of Ikenobo', as it was focused around the singular Japanese art of floral arrangement known as 'ikebana'.

The host of the event was the remarkably talented Senko Ikenobo, who is formally referred to - and revered - as the "Headmaster Designate of Ikenobō" (translating to something like "priest's residence by the pond"), which is the oldest floral school in Japan, dating back to the 7th Century. Its founder, Ono No Imoko, was a Buddhist priest and former Japanese envoy to China.

The translation of 'ikebana' is "the way of the flowers" - and unlike Western style floral arranging, it emphasizes discipline, simplicity and minimalism, as opposed to extravagance and theatricality. And the 45 strikingly beautiful compositions on display captured something distinctly Japanese in their aesthetic, allowing the captivatingly vivid colors the opportunity to not have to compete for attention with contending colors.

Most importantly, it poignantly exhibits how ikebana bears a direct relation to the sculptural work of Isamu Noguchi, in its deliberate use of negative space and linear balance. Noguchi, of course, famously and deftly drew upon nature in devising his now iconic forms.

Considered one of Japan's three "classical arts of refinement", alongside chadō (the traditional tea ceremony) and kōdō (incense appreciation), ikebana is especially resonant at this time of constant and increasingly alienating digital connection. It is a practice that is rife with symbolism, spiritualism and illuminating philosophical principles, with its roots expressly in Buddhism. And, of course, it is entirely, wonderfully analog.

(Parents: This Pinterest page has numerous ideas and tutorials, which can help guide you through creating your own ikebana arrangements - a fun and enlightening project you can do at home with the kids.)

(Noguchi Museum × Ikenobo: 40 Years in New York — A Living Tradition of Flowers and Space

Arrangements by Ikenobo Ikebana New York City Chapter.

Photos: Chanel Matsunami Govreau)