The Senke School follows the Japanese flower arrangement principles laid down by the legendary tea master Sen-no-Rikyu in mid-1500s. Although originally based in Kyoto, during the Tenmei period (1781-1789), a Senke School iemoto [headmaster] by the name of Shotei brought the school to Akita (northern Japan). Couple of iemoto generations later, Kane Shoji (flower name: Shosetsusai Shoji Osen) travelled from Akita to Seattle in 1921 and moved the Senke School to the United States in 1922.