Asheville Chapter #74 will host its first Ikebana International North American Regional Conference May 18-22, 2014 at the Renaissance Hotel in the heart of downtown Asheville, North Carolina.
The principal demonstrator will be Ichiyo School of Ikebana Headmaster Akihiro Kasuya, who will be assisted by his son, Iemoto Designate Naohiro Kasuya. The Kasuyas were able to tour the demonstration stage at the Asheville Community Theatre, adjacent to the convention headquarters hotel, when they were in Asheville for the Asheville Ichiyo Symposium in April 2009. The accompanying Ichiyo teachers and friends were able to share the initial excitement of the headmaster as the theatre director showed him the lighting and stage in the well-designed Heston Mainstage Auditorium.
An outdoor ikebana workshop/exhibit will be held on the covered patio located just outside the exhibition ballroom of the hotel.
Local potters will be featured, with ikebana containers for sale, in a special friendship room on the top floor of the hotel with a view of downtown Asheville and the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Renaissance Hotel and Asheville Community Theatre are steps away from the Thomas Wolfe Memorial, which is the site of the boyhood home of Asheville’s most famous author, Thomas Wolfe, best known for his book Look Homeward Angel.
Trolley tours will offer sightseeing highlights including Biltmore Village, Grove Park Inn, River District Arts and the famous Arts and Crafts architecture of the Asheville neighborhoods.
More information regarding Asheville is located at www.ExploreAsheville.com
Details about the conference will be added to this page as the conference planning is finalized.
