It’s a little fuzzy (enlarged a tad too much), but you can still see the time consuming detail in François Jeker’s carving. It’s especially noteworthy because the tree is a yew (taxus), a genus known for the hardness of its wood. From the cover of Bonsai Today issue 103.
Continued
This post is a continuation of the day before yesterday’s post about François appearing at Rosade Bonsai Studio on May 15th.
Borrowed from François‘ website. I’m not sure what it is, but I know I like the pot, the tree and the creative presentation.
Also from François’ website.
We just received this from François Jeker. François is the author Bonsai Aesthetics and is an accomplished bonsai artist and teacher. He is particularly known for his skills in creating, carving and aging of deadwood. Bonsai Today featured a series of his articles on the topic (issues 103, 104 and 105). The bad news is that two of these issue are out of print. The good news is that we have been posting excerpts here on Bonsai Bark and plan on posting more in the future. I particularly like his article on aging deadwood which was featured in July of last year (see images below).
François’ message en français
Bonjour à toutes et à tous. Ci-joint le résultat du premier stage 2010. Encore un bon moment et de belles émotions. Amitiés,
Rough English, courtesy of FreeTranslantion.com
Hello to all and everyone, Here is the result of the first training 2010. Again a good moment and of beautiful emotions. Yours in friendship.
Bonsai Aesthetics en español
Tenemos Bonsai Aesthetics en español y en ingles.
François’ drawings showing aging progression of deadwood. This originally appeared in Bonsai Today issue 103 (out of print) and also appears in an earlier Bonsai Bark post.
The styling progression on this cascade Shimpaku juniper by Shinji Suzuki is remarkable (you can see the whole step by step progression in our Juniper book). So is the end result. Remarkable and very unusual. Shinji Suzuki styled it when he was 24 years old. I wonder if he would do it differently now.
It’s not just the wild mixed interlocking swirls of live and dead wood…
… nor is it just the very long piece of deadwood that runs through the center like a dagger, all the way from near the top to the very bottom… nor the delicate deadwood branch the floats on top and undulates down into the very center of the cascade…. nor the 360 degree deadwood circle on the right… nor the crazy two piece trunk at the base, that lies flat on the soil with a big fist of deadwood above that, but….
… it’s all those things taken together
Nothing about this amazing bonsai is conventional, except maybe the pot and the stand. You might say the the foliage pads are somewhat normal for a cascade juniper, and that may be true, though you might take another look at their very open spacing the way they interact and move with and against the deadwood.
A not particularly eccentric bonsai. This powerful and tranquil old Needle juniper is probably Shinji Suzuki’s best known tree. It originally appeared on the cover of Bonsai Today issue 63 and also appears in the gallery section of our Juniper book.
Shinji Suzuki
Is world-renowned for his bonsai, both conventional and unusual. If you are interested in learning more about Mr. Suzuki check out Michael Hagedorn’s excellent book; Postdated; The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk.
Shore Juniper (J. procumbens) by master bonsai innovator, Masahiko Kimura. I like this one. It combines the sculptural look that has been favored by some Japanese bonsai artists (especially in the 90s) with a more wild, rugged natural look that is in favor in much of the world bonsai community. Not that bonsai is so simple that it can be divided into two categories; sculptural versus natural. If bonsai is an art, then categories are continually being broken down as artist play, explore and innovate. And no bonsai artist that I know of, has played, explored and innovated more successfully that Master Kimura. Photo is from our Juniper book.
What is it about junipers?
Junipers are tough, durable, flexible (they take to wire like they were made for it) and pruneable. They don’t mind having their roots hacked (sometime quite heavily) and they take to container culture. Their needles tend to be small and dense and both their needles and bark come in a range of attractive (sometimes luminous) colors and textures. Perhaps best of all, junipers take to carving like few other plants; and their deadwood is both attractive and long lasting (all deadwood eventually rots, but juniper wood rots more slowly than most), especially if you keep it clean and apply lime sulfur.
Everywhere and for everyone
Junipers grow almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere (they don’t occur south of the equator), from the Arctic tundra to the Central American mountains and African tropics. This means that there are varieties for almost any climate, including some that can survive indoors (only under just the right conditions, with the emphasis on survive, rather than on grow; as indoor cultivation is tough on most plants – but that’s a story for another time). All this makes junipers a first choice for bonsai, from beginners all the way to the masters.
Dwarf Japanese garden juniper (J. procumbens ‘Nana’). By Jerald B. Stowell. From Bonsai Today issue 26. Procumbens nana is by far the most popular juniper for beginners, at least here in the States (it’s the one you see ad nauseam in the malls around the Holidays). However, you seldom see a masterpiece, as the trunks tend to stay too thin. The trunk on this one is about a thick as they ever get.
Contest entry number eight by Jonathan Pessin. There’s something going on with this little juniper, though I’m not sure where’s it’s headed. Cascade? In any case, it’s potential will have a hard time developing in such a small pot. Most of the best shohin are grown in larger pots (or even in the ground) and then reduced. As it is, unrefined potential is probably the best description. I do like the heavy little trunk and think that over time and with some work the deadwood might add character. Maybe it could go all the way down to the base of the trunk and even be hollowed out some at the bottom. Is it just the photo, or is the wire already digging in?
Once again, let’s get this over with
Two more entries and we can award one of you a $100 gift certificate to Stone Lantern. What are you waiting for? Details here.
This Manzanita is growing on a granite ledge on a rise just before you drop down into Yosemite valley. The others shown below are from the same general area. All the photos were taken by Amy Palmer, during a Sierra hiking and tree identification trip that Amy and I just returned from.
Pervasive, beautiful, and seemingly perfect for bonsai
Whenever I go into the California Coast range or the Sierras, I’m struck by the Manzanitas. Not only are they eye catching in ways few plants are (the photos speak for themselves) but many appear to be near perfect for bonsai with squat trunks, small leaves and more than their fair share of character. And, they are practically everywhere. To be sure some are too big (there are over fifty species of Manzanita) but many, if not most, varieties look ready made bonsai.
Where are all the Manzanita bonsai?
My guess is that manzanitas just don’t take to bonsai culture. But, it’s just a guess. Or maybe there are some great manzanita bonsai that have been hiding from me. Perhaps one of you lucky enough to live in mazanita country can clue me in.
The fairly short grasses give you some idea just how squat and powerful this trunk is. No need to point out the dramatic interplay of deadwood and the trademark slick red bark.
Continue reading ‘The Manzanita Mystery’
I won’t say where juniper (looks like a shimpaku) bonsai came from, but will say why we choose it as an eccentric bonsai (see below) after an apology for it being slightly out of focus (it was enlarged a tad too much so it would fit our format).
The contest: win a $25 gift certificate to Stone Lantern
The first person to tell us whose tree this is and where we can verify that, will win a $25 gift certificate to Stone Lantern. Please put your answer in the comments below.
Eccentric?
I realize that eccentric is in the bleary eye of the beholder, and certainly mean no offense to the artist.
Continue reading ‘Eccentric Bonsai #3 & Contest #8′
Nick Lenz calls this rugged heavily scarred old larch a ’super hack back job’ (performed with a chainsaw). It’s noteworthy for its excellent taper and nebari (among other things), things that doesn’t come naturally with most larches. I guess you could say that the Halloween carving is also noteworthy. The photo is from Nick’s book, Bonsai from the Wild (Stone Lantern Publishing).
Round these parts it’s a Tamarack
Here in Vermont we are right on the southern edge of the Larix laricina’s range. Most bonsai enthusiasts (and many others) refer to it as the American larch, but around here almost everyone calls it the Tamarack.
So many good qualities
Of all the trees that grow around here, larches are the most prized bonsai candidates. They are easy to grow, flexible, take to pruning and root pruning, have small bright green needles and excellent fall color, the wood is easy to carve and the resulting deadwood is attractive, they develop real character with age, and so forth…
Continue reading ‘In Praise of the American Larch: aka the Tamarack’
Carl Morrow sent us this digitalized revision (and two others, see below) of a juniper that was originally submitted to our ‘Fearless Bonsai Warrior‘ program, by John Romano. This is the second critique of John’s juniper that has been submitted to Bonsai Bark (here’s the other).
Carl’s turn with John’s Juniper
The photos and text in this post were submitted by Carl Morrow. Carl has been here before with his own tree. Now he’s tackling John Romano’s juniper.
“A tree needs to tell a consistent story and when one has an outstanding feature or focal point then the theme created needs to be repeated through other parts of the tree to create a consistent image.
This is a lovely tree that I would happily play with. Deadwood is a very powerful focal point and it is difficult to look anywhere else when there is a stark white area on the tree. In the current form, John’s tree has single piece of deadwood that is not repeated anywhere else. What could have caused just one major branch to die without affecting anything else on the tree? The tip of the jin is firmly pointing downwards while the rest of the (trunk line and foliage) tree has an upward feel. For this reason I find the jin jarring and unnatural. I would do one of two things to solve this.”
Continue reading ‘Revisiting John Romano’s Almost Famous Juniper’
Patrick Giacobbe was kind enough to send this along with some comments (my dream of a more interactive blog is slowly dawning). It’s his take on a photo that was submitted by John Romano that appears in an earlier post (Be A Fearless Bonsai Warrior – 9/24/09). To clarify, the tree is John’s and the superimposed lines and the comments that follow are Patrick’s (edited just a bit by yours truly – I had to key it in anyway as text was sent as part of the image).
Dear John (from Patrick)
John, no need to apologize for the tree. It’s a given that a tree needs to recover after the stress of preparation (for) a show or photo contest. A big part of the recovery is to let the tree grow out. I appreciate the confidence and the stones you have to (present) it in its “shaggy” recovery stage. What we should be talking about is the high standard of artistic design the tree is projecting and why.
Continue reading ‘A Reader’s Critique and a Small Exception’
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