Though it’s not as powerful as many other Kimura trees (see below), nor is it considered one of his classics, still… there’s that unusual trunk that give pause for thought. It’s a Japanese Yew that appears in The Bonsai Art of Kimura (long out of print). There is no explanation given for how the trunk was formed. Is it possible that Kimura split the original trunk and doubled it back on itself?
It’s Saturday morning, the leaves are turning and it’s a beautiful day. Time to dig into our archives and then get outside and enjoy Vermont at its best.
This post originally appeared in February 2010. It was titled ‘Eccentric Bonsai: Fearless Master Kimura Again’. I’ve added some copy and killed some of the original copy in an attempt to reduce the wince factor.
The following is from The Bonsai Art of Kimura (still out of print) in a section titled ‘Some future bonsai masterpieces.’
“…this Yew was a favorite tree in the artist’s collection. He sold it once only to buy it back again.
“In the summer of 1984 the back branch died because the wire Kimura put on originally had not been removed (this no doubt happened during the time when someone else owned it). Although it was an important branch that provided balance, it was compensated for by changing positions of other branches. The tree’s height is 26″ (66 cm).”
Same species but very different tree. This powerful and famous Yew by Master Kimura is, though unusual in its own right, a more classic bonsai. It’s from The Magician (below). It also appears in Bonsai Today issue 56.
Dig in and let yourself be inspired by the bonsai brilliance of the The Magician. On special at Stone Lantern.