1919(Taisho 8), a new style using Western flowers."Sasaoka style Morika""Misho-ryu Sasaoka" is known for inventing the "Ceylon Lightia". The current head of the school, Ryuho Sasaoka, is attracting attention for his activities in a wide range of fields, not only expressing traditional flower arrangement but also collaborating with other genres such as musicals and kyogen. In the series "Flowers of the Month, Kyoto of the Month," Sasaoka, who lives in Kyoto, talks about the flowers of the month and the seasonal scenery of Kyoto for that month. In July, he talks about "Ceylon Lightia" and "Gion Festival."

Paying homage to Le Corbusier's design,

Arranging pure white flowers from Sri Lanka

The cool white flowers are from a flowering tree called Ceylon Lightia, which is native to Sri Lanka. It is not a flowering material that is used very often, but the pure white flowers, which resemble a star shape, bring a cool feeling.

What looks like a water basin is not a vase, but a plate based on a design by Le Corbusier and made by the Italian furniture manufacturer Cassina.

Le Corbusier, one of the leading architects of the 20th century, once worked on a large-scale urban plan for Chandigarh, a city in northern India. Many buildings designed by Corbusier remain in this city, which is also a World Heritage Site. This plate is designed based on the motif of the relief design painted on the wall of one of these buildings. The movement of the sun is depicted on the rectangular plate, whose long side is just under 40 cm.

I studied architecture at university, and Le Corbusier is one of the architects I respect. I tried to pay homage to this great architect. Normally, I would avoid immersing the leaves in water, but in this case, the flowers would sink into the water if I didn't. I deliberately placed the leaves in water and arranged the flowers with the image of following the movement of the sun.

He became a young boy of the Nagatoboko float when he was in the fifth grade of elementary school.

I still remember the tension I felt when cutting the rope.

When you think of Kyoto in July, you think of the Gion Festival. Kyoto Station, Shinkyogoku, Shijo Street... As July approaches, you can hear music all over the city, and the festival mood rises. The Gion Festival is originally a ritual for Yasaka Shrine, and the center of the festival is the portable shrine carried by the parishioners, but it is the Yamahoko procession that attracts the attention of many tourists. The Naginataboko float leads the procession of the Sakimatsuri (first festival) held on the 7th.

In the past, many Yamahoko floats had young boys called "ikichigo" riding on them, but now only the Nagatoboko does so, and the other Yamahoko floats now carry dolls of young boys.

I served as a boy for this Nagatsukaboko when I was in the fifth grade of elementary school. Because boys are messengers of the gods, they are not allowed to put their feet on the ground. Therefore, when moving around, they either ride on a white horse or are carried on the shoulders of a man called Goriki-san. There are many people involved, and since it is a religious ceremony, everyone is very solemn, and even as a child I felt that "this isn't just fun and games."

I still remember the tension I felt when the children's most important role was to cut the shimenawa rope stretched across Shijo Street with a sword.

I was given the opportunity to perform this ritual in front of the shrine at the Nagatocho Town venue.

To offer flowers every year

Thanks to my experience as a child, I joined the Nagatsukaboko festival musicians the following year. The musicians are the people who ride on the floats and play the music during the parade. It is an object of admiration for children living in Hokomachi. They start out playing the gongs that make the "konchi-chin" sound, and when they reach the age of around 20, they move on to playing the taiko drums or flutes. Each of the many floats has a different music style, and they compete with each other to show off their skills, so the musicians work really hard. They practice rigorously all year round.

I progressed to the flute position and took part in the processions for a while, but after I inherited the position of head of the school, it became difficult for me to attend all the practice sessions, so I stepped down from my role as a musician.

Instead, as a token of our appreciation for the long-standing relationship, we offer flowers every year in front of the altar at the Nagatochoboko town hall.

The flower of the Gion Festival is the hiougi fan. It is a type of iris, but its leaves resemble a fan made from thin cypress boards, hence the name. The dark green leaves have a cool feel, and like a fan, they also have auspicious features, making it an indispensable flower for the Gion Festival.

"Ikenabashi Exhibition for the Gion Festival"

Shijo Street becomes a street gallery

One thing you should definitely see during the Gion Festival is the "Ikebana Exhibition for the Gion Festival" organized by the Kyoto Ikebana Association. With the cooperation of the "Shijo Tsueikai Shopping Street" and the "Gion Shopping Street," various schools of ikebana will be arranging flowers in the show windows of Shijo Street from the bottom of the Gion Stone Steps in front of Yasaka Shrine to Shijo Karasuma.

This event, now in its 38th year, was started by my grandfather and will turn Shijo Street into a street gallery. It will be held for three days from the 15th to the 17th. Please come and enjoy the summer flowers of each school.

This July will be the last month of "Flowers of the Month, Kyoto of the Month," which has been with us throughout the year. Thank you very much for reading this magazine for the past year. I hope I have been able to convey to you the joy of having flowers around you in your life and the joy of arranging those flowers.

I would be very happy if this series could spark an interest in Ikebana in even a few people. I hope to meet you again someday soon.