A Little Bonsai History

This famous Chinese elm (Ulmus parivflora) planting is by Zhao Qingquan, reknowned penjing artist, teacher and author of two best Penjing books in the English, Penjing: the Chinese Art of Bonsai and Literati Style Penjing Yesterday we featured a couple of events and photos from the Pacific Bonsai Museum. So, just for the fun of it, I thought we’d go back and find our earliest PBM post. It’s from April 21st, 2009, almost exactly 9 years ago. Way back in the day when it was owned by Weyerhauser and called the Weyerhaeuser’s Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection. The two photos shown here were … Continue reading A Little Bonsai History

Arts of the Earth & The Principles of Bonsai Design

Beech with vase. The tree is a Japanese beech ‘Fuji’ by Kazuhiro Ohashi. The photo is from Weyerhaeuser’s Pacific Rim Arts of the Earth Exhibit. This exhibit took place in 2006. In 2013 the Weyerhaeuser corporation gifted its entire bonsai collection to what is now know as the Pacific Bonsai Museum. You can read the whole story here. Continuing with our Japanese beech theme (see the tree above), we’re going to journey back to the early days of this century and revisit a unique bonsai and ceramic art exhibition from 2006. I think you’ll like the photos and the commentary by David DeGroot, who was the curator at the WeyerhaeuserPacific Rim Bonsai Collection (now … Continue reading Arts of the Earth & The Principles of Bonsai Design

Rim Shots, New and Improved

This striking formal uprignt Hinoki Cypress is the feature tree on the Pacific Rim’s new website (new to me at least). At a glance it brings to mind the Sierra’s towering Giant Sequoias. A great choice for a west coast bonsai site. First, a disclaimer. I’ve never been to the Pacific Rim Bonsai Museum. We’ve featured it several time here on Bark and have extolled its virtues based on bits and pieces we have been able to pick up on its historically woefully inadequate website and elsewhere. Now, at first glance at least, the ‘woefully inadequate’ piece has changed with … Continue reading Rim Shots, New and Improved

Rim Shots

This has got to be one of the most magnificent Chinese hackberry (Celtis sinensis) bonsai anywhere. Though the distinctive split trunk needs no comment, you might also notice the highly developed ramification (fine branching). The tree was donated to the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection by Ben Oki. We’ve featured it before, but it’s certainly worth another shot. Pacific Rim. Looking for an excuse to visit the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection? These trees might provide some incentive. Dave DeGroot, curator of the Collection, sent us the photos along with some history and some of his observations. With the exception of our … Continue reading Rim Shots

New American Masters at the Rim

I was struck by this large Ponderosa pine at the 3rd U.S. National Exhibition. It’s even bigger than it looks here and also has more depth and movement than this two dimensional representation shows. Still, you can get some idea of its natural power. It belongs to Ryan Neil. New American Masters show at the Pacific Rim Collection Michael Hagedorn and Ryan Neil both apprenticed in Japan where the term Master isn’t thrown around casually, and my guess is that neither of them is completely comfortable with it being used in reference to themselves. However, whatever term your choose, there’s … Continue reading New American Masters at the Rim

Arts of the Earth

Beech with vase. The tree is a Japanese beech ‘Fuji’ by Kazuhiro Ohashi. For more information, including the name of the artist who made the vase, you can visit the Weyerhaeuser’s Pacific Rim Arts of the Earth Exhibit Traditions and Transitions: Arts of the Earth Exhibit Digging way back to the early days of this century (2006), we turned up this unique exhibit from Weyerhaeuser’s Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection. Aside from saying that I very much enjoyed the photos and the concept, we’ll leave the rest to David De Groot, the curator of the collection. In Curator David De Groot’s … Continue reading Arts of the Earth