Valentin’s Bonsai Behemoth

This is what can happen to an old bonsai behemoth in the hands of the right artist. In this case the hands belong to Valentín Cruz. The tree is a yamadori (collected from the wild) Sierra juniper (Juniperus occidentalis) Continuing with North American bonsai in our lead up to the 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition… It wasn’t long ago I stumbled upon the bonsai of Valentín Cruz, a remarkably skilled young bonsai artist who lives and practices his art in Northern California. Valentín is a student of Jim Gremel, a highly respected bonsai artist and ceramicist, and the proprietor of Deer Meadow Bonsai … Continue reading Valentin’s Bonsai Behemoth

A Superb Atlas Cedar Before & After Bonsai

This elegant before and after Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica) is by Valentín Cruz. Before we go any further, I’d like to invite you back to yesterday’s post to see a correction and an apology. It all started when I missed the word ‘style’… Sticking with Valentín Cruz, our new found and very talented young bonsai artist. This time it’s a superb Atlas cedar before and after. BONSAI AESTHETICS WIRE KILO ROLLS 17.95 ONLY 15.95 EACH FOR 3 OR MORE 500 GRAM ROLLS 9.95 ONLY 8.95 EACH FOR 3 OR MORE 100 GRAM ROLLS 3.95 ONLY 2.95 EACH FOR 10 ROLLS OR MORE Before After. … Continue reading A Superb Atlas Cedar Before & After Bonsai

A Dramatic Before & After Bonsai

An impressive Sierra juniper(Juniperus occidentalis) transformation by Valentín Cruz. It was originally dug by Ned Lycett Before we start, we’ve got an update on yesterday’s post, thanks to Bill Valvanis (see below). Here we go again with another exceptional before and after bonsai. I found it on the artist’s timeline. His name is Valentín Cruz and a couple hours ago I had no idea he existed. My guess is you didn’t either, but if you spend some time looking him up you most likely won’t forget him. By the way Valentín’s bonsai teacher is Jim Gremel, an artist we’ve featured several times over the years. Roshi Tool Special … Continue reading A Dramatic Before & After Bonsai

Highly Unusual & Undeniably Lush

This Hinoki forest is from the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society’s 2009 Annual Show. It’s a very unusual planting and quite compelling in its lush naturalness. I’ve come across spruce groves while hiking in Vermont and New Hampshire that look something like this. You find them near the mountain tops, where the harsh climate causes the trees to dwarf and huddle together. Traveling again so it’s back to our archives. The photo and caption above are from a post way back in 2010. It’s hard to miss the canopy’s lush and luminous emerald green color. This is characteristic of Hinoki foliage … Continue reading Highly Unusual & Undeniably Lush

Home Turf – Bay Area Bonsai

This exposed-roots pine is from the 2016 Bay Island Bonsai Exhibition. I borrowed the photo from Jeremiah Lee’s Yenling Bonsai Blog. The caption reads: Started from seed by Morten in 2000 (that would be Morten Wellhaven). The photos shown here are from Jeremiah Lee’s Yenling Bonsai Blog. They were taken at the 2016 Bay Island Bonsai Exhibition. Bay Island Bonsai is a Northern California Organization that was founded in 1998 by one of North America’s seminal bonsai teachers, Boon Manakitivipart (Bonsai Boon). The Home Turf in the title is personal. I was born and spent many formative years in the … Continue reading Home Turf – Bay Area Bonsai

A Skinny Lone Tree, a Large Empty Space…

California Juniper (Juniperus californica) at the Cup. It belongs to Seiji Shiba. Estimated age: 1000-1600 years old, trained for 15 years. All the photos in this post are by Hoe Chuah. I just rediscovered* an exceptional bonsai blog. It’s titled Bonsai Penjing & More and it belongs to Hoe Chuah. Most of the best bonsai blogs have good photos, but blogs like Bonsai Penjing & More that combine quality photos with thoughtful, well written comments are lot less common. The following by Hoe Chuah is from yesterday’s Bark comments. The tree he references is just below. “I like Michael Pollack’s hinoki … Continue reading A Skinny Lone Tree, a Large Empty Space…

Judging Bonsai at the Cup: The Limits of the Point System

Eric Schikowski’s collected Mountain Hemlock was one of my favorites. It was also Peter Warren’s first choice. I borrowed this photo and the one below from Eric Shrader’s PHUTU blog. I was going to give the Cup a rest for awhile until I ran across this thorough, thoughtful and thought provoking article on Eric Shrader’s PHUTU (one of the best blogs I’ve had the good fortune to stumble upon lately). We’ll start with a disclaimer two disclaimers: First, what follows takes nothing away from the winners. All four (third place was a tie) are great bonsai and worthy of accolades. … Continue reading Judging Bonsai at the Cup: The Limits of the Point System

Walking Through Row after Row of Mind Bending Bonsai while Holding on to Your Socks

We don’t have any photos yet from the 4th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, so we’ll harken back to the very first Exhibition (way back in 2008) and show you Jim Gremel’s magnificent cascading Sargent’s juniper that just happened to be the first grand prize (National Award Masterpiece) winner, in what is now becoming a long chain of U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition winners. I got back late last night from the 4th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition in Rochester (I left early due to previous commitment). No one except a designated professional is photographing the trees on display, so nothing to show … Continue reading Walking Through Row after Row of Mind Bending Bonsai while Holding on to Your Socks

Sticking with Our Cedar Theme

Jim Gremel had a Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica – one of the handful of true Cedars) that looked a lot like this one at the 2012 U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. Winging to Boston and then driving back to the ice palace today (from sunny SF), so let’s indulge in one more foray into the archives. We’ll stick with out Cedar theme while we’re at it. This one was titled Real Cedar Bonsai & A Good Neighbor (June, 2012). Deer Meadow Bonsai & the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition Some of the trees that were offered for sale at the … Continue reading Sticking with Our Cedar Theme

Highly Unusual & Strikingly Beautiful

This Hinoki forest is from the Redwood Empire Bonsai Society’s 2009 Annual Show. It’s a very unusual planting and quite compelling in its naturalness. I’ve come across spruce groves while hiking in Vermont and New Hampshire that look something like this. You find them near the mountain tops, where the harsh climate causes the trees to dwarf and huddle together. These little forests of dwarf trees with their lush moss carpets and time worn rocks, can evoke a peaceful almost other worldly feeling when you stumble across them. The photo and caption above are from a Bark post way … Continue reading Highly Unusual & Strikingly Beautiful