Valley of the Moon Garden Club to offer ikebana presentation

Valley of the Moon Garden Club will feature a demonstration and discussion on the Japanese art of ikebana floral arrangement next week.

Sonoma resident Dori Araujo, who has been a floral designer for 55 years and is now retired, will deliver the presentation at First Congregational Church at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 4. A $5 fee will be charged.

Araujo has worked in flower shops in Hawaii, New Jersey, Tennessee, Florida and Canada. Her love of ikebana began when she was in Hawaii. Her neighbor, a master ikebana instructor, offered to teach her and Araujo has furthered her knowledge at many ikebana schools since then.

Following ikebana tradition, Araujo will demonstrate one tall and one low arrangement at her presentation.

Participants who want to make an arrangement after the demonstration will need to use a ceramic vase (not clear glass) that is at least 8-inches tall or a bowl that is 10-inches wide, along with a metal “frog” flower holder, pruners, branches and a few flowers.

Ikebana tradition dates to Japan’s Heian period (794 to 1185), when floral offerings were made at altars. Flower arrangements later were used to adorn the “tokonoma” (alcove) in traditional Japanese homes.

The complete structure of the Japanese floral arrangement focuses on three main points — symbolizing the sky, earth and human — through the pillars asymmetry, space and depth.

The presentation on Thursday will be held in Burlington Hall at First Congregational Church, 252 W. Spain St. in Sonoma. Refreshments and a plant raffle will follow. The hall is large, chairs will be widely spaced and masks are optional.

Reach the reporter, Dan Johnson, at daniel.johnson@sonomanews.com.