Sōfū Teshigahara ( 勅使河原蒼

風 Radical 182 or radical wind () meaning "wind" is one of the 11 Kangxi radicals (214 radicals in total) composed of 9 strokes. In the ''Kangxi Dictionary'', there are 182 characters (out of 49,030) to be found under this radical. In Taoist cosm ...

''Teshigahara Sōfū'', 1900–1979) was the founder of the ''

Sōgetsu-ryū is a school of ''ikebana'', or Japanese floral art. History Sōgetsu was founded by Sōfū Teshigahara in 1927. Sōfū's father was an ikebana master, who taught his son from childhood. Sōfū wanted to become a painter, but he found that t ...

'' school of ''

ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It is also known as . The tradition dates back to Heian period, when floral offerings were made at altars. Later, flower arrangements were instead used to adorn the (alcove) of a traditional Jap ...

flower arranging Floral design or flower arrangement is the art of using plant materials and flowers to create an eye-catching and balanced composition or display. Evidence of refined floristry is found as far back as the culture of ancient Egypt. Professionally ...

Biography

He was born in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. He learned flower arranging from his father, who had studied many styles of different schools. In 1927 he started the Sōgetsu School. His son is the Japanese film director

Hiroshi Teshigahara was a Japanese avant-garde filmmaker and artist from the Japanese New Wave era. He is best known for the 1964 film '' Woman in the Dunes''. He is also known for directing other titles such as '' The Face of Another'' (1966), ''Natsu No Heitai'' (' ...

. He believed that ikebana is an art and that the difference between the Sōgetsu School and Ikebana lies in the belief that once all the rules are learned and the techniques mastered, an unbounded field remains for freer personal expression using varied materials, not just flowers. In 1929 he held the first Sogetsu exhibition at

Ginza Ginza ( ; ja, 銀座 ) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, located south of Yaesu and Kyōbashi, Tokyo, Kyōbashi, west of Tsukiji, east of Yūrakuchō and Uchisaiwaichō, and north of Shinbashi. It is a popular upscale shopping area ...

, in 1930 at the Josui Kaikan in Tokyo working with

scrap metal Scrap consists of recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has monetary value, especially recovered m ...

, a new medium. In 1949 the first major post-war Sōgetsu exhibition was held at the Mitsukoshi Department Store in Ginza and proved to be revolutionary. Between 1950 and 1970, he held exhibitions and demonstrations across Europe and the United States. Sōfū never deviated from the basic principles that distinguish ikebana from other forms of floral art: to grasp and express the feeling of the material, to express the third dimension and asymmetrical balance. The concept that was foremost in his teaching was that the principles never change, but rather that the form is always changing. His further belief was that ikebana should be considered art, not merely decoration and that it is for the entire world, not just Japan alone. In addition to ikebana, he continued to create various sculptures, drawings and works of calligraphy until his death.

Recognition

The French government awarded him the

Order of Arts and Letters The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

in 1960, and the Legion of Honor in 1961. Japan bestowed the Minister of Education Awards for Art in 1962.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Teshigahara, Sofu 1900 births 1979 deaths Kadōka Recipients of the Legion of Honour