In Ohara School of Ikebana, the highest ranking sensei (teacher) is called a Grand Master. We were lucky to have these Grand Masters in our chapter for the past 50 years. While all of them are no longer with us, their legacy is the students and teachers they trained.
Mutsuo Tomita – Mr. Tomita began studying Ohara Ikebana at a very young age in Hokkaido, Japan and started teaching in 1963. He was selected to be the Director of the Ohara Center of New York where he presided for over three decades. Mr. Tomita was an internationally renowned lecturer and demonstrator and provided much admired creations for numerous embassy’s and museums both in the US and abroad. He also gave renowned demonstrations in the US and in many countries as an Ohara School Ambassador.
Kosui Fujikado – She was our chapter’s founder and first president. Originally from Sendai, Japan, she started her Ikebana training at Age 13. In 1920, she and her husband settled in Seattle, WA and she began teaching Ohara ikebana. Mrs. Fujikado later moved to Alexandria, VA where she taught Ohara ikebana and did arrangements for the Japanese embassy.
Katsuko (Kay) Fujikado Lee – Mrs. Lee is the daughter of Mrs. Kosui Fujikado. She was our chapter’s president for 1973-74 and 1989-90 and an active Ohara teacher. Among her many accomplishments, Mrs. Lee, together with her late mother, provided numerous arrangements for state functions at the Japanese embassy.
Betty F. Taylor – Mrs. Taylor studied with the late Grand Master Mutsuo Tomita. She served as president of the Washington DC Ohara chapter for five terms and gave numerous public demonstrations. She taught students in the Washington DC area and in Highlands, North Carolina for many years.
From left: Mr. Tomita, Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Taylor
The Ohara School of Ikebana Washington, DC Chapter 