This remarkable bonsai is labeled Taiwanese juniper (Juniperus chinensis) in Marco Invernizzi’s gallery. The stock for this bonsai was most likely field grown in Taiwan along with thousands of others. BTW: Taiwanese junipers are sometimes confused with the native Squamata juniper which grow wild in the mountains of Taiwan (there’s more on this in this Bark post from February).
It has been a few months since we visited Marco Invernizzi’s bonsai gallery. Just in case you don’t know Marco, he was one of Masahiko Kimura’s first apprentices and was also one of the first Western bonsai artists to become a household name. Knowing these two facts, you might surmise that by now, Marco is tinting grey strands in his sideburns. Not so though. He started with bonsai while still an infant and by the time he was six, he was famous throughout Europe and much of Japan. Now at sixteen he wistfully talks about retirement, but those of us who know him are certain that his passion and talent won’t let him rest.
Look familiar? You might remember this Japanese yew from a Bark post not too long ago (day before yesterday to be precise). I like this earlier fuller iteration by Marco, though without Mauro’s later refinement, the crown would soon become too heavy.
A stately three foot tall bunjin Kyshui shimpaku (Juniperus chinensis, var Kyshu).
Marco (and Masakuni’s) famous Ichiban multi-purpose bonsai tool (7 tools in one) is now on special at Stone Lantern for only 199.20 (249.00 less your 20% discount for our current sale).