The Japanese art of flower arranging, Ikebana, continues to bloom in Chinook and northeast Montana where Ikebana has been practiced for 60 years.

Allie Marie Uyehara who is originally from Chinook, brought the art back from Japan in the 1950s, sharing with the local garden club the lessons she’d learned at the famed Sogetsu School of Ikebana. Ikebana International Chapter No.8 began in Chinook in 1957, and remains the only club of its kind in Montana today.

Its principles are that of Sogetsu: anyone can arrange flowers, flower arrangements can be displayed anywhere, and anything may be used as a material. Its motto is that of Ikebana International-”Friendship Through Flowers.”

On Wednesday, July 19, the club celebrates its 60th anniversary with a presentation by Jane Redmon. Redmon began her Ikebana training at the Smithsonian Institution, moving on to the Sogetsu School in Tokyo for a teaching degree in 1978 and an advanced degree in 2002.

She taught at Sogetsu USA from 1977 to 2006 retiring as Executive Director. She has also taught privately, participated in exhibitions, and is Past Director, Deputy Director, and Past President of the Washington, D.C., Ikebana International Chapter No.I.

Ikebana’s roots are found in Buddhist temple flower offerings. The first formal designs were called rikka, and combined branches and flowers for huge constructions. The smaller seika style emerged later, proving adaptable for home display and bringing women into the art for the first time. Later styles include nageire, with tall containers, and moribana, in low containers. Each style is designed to look like natural growth in spite of disciplined rules.

An international military presence in japan after World War II introduced foreigners to the art and Ikebana International began in 1956 to spread it throughout the world. Today there are over 11,000 members in more than 200 clubs worldwide.

Redmon’s presentation is at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the Girl Scout House, 816 New York, in

Chinook. Admission is free. Call 406-357-3545 for more information.