Melbourne

classes: Ikebana • Floristry

4.9 (83)

Shoso Shimbo, PhD

Ikebana Artist | Sculptor | Garden Designer | Shinto Priest

www.shoso.com.au

Dr Shoso Shimbo is an ikebana artist, award-winning sculptor, garden designer, and Shinto priest active in both the contemporary art and floral design worlds. His numerous accolades include a Gold Award at the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show.

Dr Shimbo frequently collaborates with local and international musicians, including Paul Grabowsky and the Gregorian Brothers, presenting live installation performances at the Melbourne Recital Centre and internationally in Vietnam.

On 29 August 2026, he will present an ikebana performance with Jessica Aszodi at Melbourne Recital Centre.

In 2023, he was invited to participate in the National Gallery of Victoria’s (NGV) Bloom event. His floral art is regularly featured in International Floral Art by Stichting Kunstboek (Belgium).

As a leading figure in the community, Dr Shimbo is the CEO of the biennial Melbourne Ikebana Festival. He also founded Ikebana Dojo, an online learning platform, and the Ikebana Gallery Award, the world's first online international ikebana competition.

His sculptural work has been exhibited in major national contemporary art events and in 2017, he was awarded the Arnold Bloch Leiber Prize at the Yering Station Sculpture Exhibition. He was commissioned to create a public art installation for the Archibald Prize Exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ballarat, and after the bushfires in 2016, he created the Wye River Project as part of Lorne Sculpture.

A prolific researcher, he regularly contributes to the International Journal of Ikebana Studies. His recent academic work include:

the chapter “Environmental Art: Ikebana Meets Contemporary Art, ” published in Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects (Springer, 2026), and

“Relative Positions of Freestyle Ikebana Movement in the Field of Ikebana Before and After WWII, ” Traditional Culture (Kyoto University of Arts Publishing).

He currently serves as:

Vice President, International Society of Ikebana Research (ISIR),

CEO, Wa: Melbourne Ikebana Festival.

Additional Qualifications:

Certified Shinto Priest (Chokkai officially approved by Jinja Honcho – Kyoto Kokugakuin)

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