A Magical Land Where Almost Every House Has a Bonsai

We know this tree is very large, but exactly how large is difficult to tell (the uncropped photo immediately below might help a bit). In addition to its great size, it shows an excellent base and nebari, as well as some gnarly bumps that look a bit like melting wax. I think I can say with confidence that it’s Ficus. All the photos in this post were taken by Robert Steven on a recent trip to Vietnam. Robert Steven seems to teach and travel almost incessantly, and yet he still finds time to write about bonsai, run Bonsai Aesthetics (his … Continue reading A Magical Land Where Almost Every House Has a Bonsai

Dragon 3

Highly distinctive, exceptionally powerful and almost grotesque. When I first glanced at this tree, there was just a massive trunk with great taper and one of the largest sabamiki (the hollow in the trunk) ever. Then the face appeared (purely a mental projection by the way). I think the solution to this dilemma is to relax the gaze and take in a the whole tree and the space around it. Or simply don’t bother projecting. The photos of the trees that Robert Steven sent from the recent BCI convention in China are so good that they’re worth a third post … Continue reading Dragon 3

Artisans Cup Postponed

This Rocky Mountain juniper (Juniperus scopulorum) belongs to Ryan Neil. The photo is from Ryan’s International Bonsai Mirai website. A guest’s guest post. The following is from Michael Hagedorns Crataegus Bonsai blog. Artisans Cup postponed until September 2015 This is a guest post by Ryan Neil. I am in full support of his words here: Over the past fourteen months of research and planning the potential of the Artisans Cup has been a driving force in our bonsai community to grow and improve the level of our trees. The enthusiastic response of the entire Western bonsai world fueled our ambition and … Continue reading Artisans Cup Postponed

Dragon Ascending

What appear to be roots growing out of a long hollow on the side of trunk, creates a very unusual and fascinating effect. The rest of the tree isn’t half bad either and the flute player adds a playful human quality and contributes to a sense of vastness. The photo, which is courtesy of Robert Steven is from the recent BCI convention in China This post, like the previous post titled BCI: Bonsai Strong, shows more of Robert Steven‘s photos from the recent BCI convention in China. As you may know, in addition to being a great bonsai artist, Robert … Continue reading Dragon Ascending

BCI: Bonsai Strong

Bonsai strong. One of many spectacular trees displayed at the recent BCI convention in China. This and all the photos in this post are courtesy of Robert Steven. Pines now, the rest later. Robert Steven just sent us a whole host of great photos from the recent BCI convention in China. We’ll start with some powerful pines here, and then show you some of the other trees in a few days. This has to be one of the most impressive pine forests anywhere. Actually, you can scratch the pine part and we’ll just leave it at one of the … Continue reading BCI: Bonsai Strong

Change Your Plans

Sometimes it’s helpful to break a bonsai down into its constituent parts. What you might see in this case, is a somewhat classical root-over-rock Trident maple bonsai accentuated by two rather long, undulating branches on either side. For some of us, there might be a temptation to cut them off; to revert to something safer and more recognizable as bonsai. Don’t do it! The photo is from the National Bonsai Foundation’s 2013 calendar. Mr. California Juniper at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum. The event is the annual Potomac Bonsai Festival which happens to be coming up this weekend (May … Continue reading Change Your Plans

Getting Out of the Way

This Ponderosa pine was no doubt collected somewhere in western North America. Europeans are lucky in that regard; it’s relatively easy for them to import plants from around the world. Here in the U.S. restrictions are much more onerous. The tree belongs to (or belonged to?) Walter Pall. The photo is from The Art of Bonsai Project, as are all the photos in this post. All of the bonsai in this post are by Walter Pall in collaboration with Mother Nature. Walter is a proponent of the ‘getting out of the way’ school of bonsai. Not that we want to … Continue reading Getting Out of the Way

Bjorn’s Biggest Loser

After. This masterpiece Itoigawa Shimpaku was recently restyled by Bjorn Bjorholm at Keiichi Fujikawa’s Kouka-en Bonsai Nursery in Ikeda City, Japan, where Bjorn is currently an apprentice. The photo is from a post on Bjorn’s Bjorvala Bonsai Studio blog, as are all the photos in this post. The Biggest Loser In Bjorn’s own words… “This massive Itoigawa Shimpaku has a long history as a bonsai. It was first shown in the Kokufu-ten about 35 years ago, back in the days before the boom in major refinement techniques and quality occurred. Since then, it was purchased by several different owners and … Continue reading Bjorn’s Biggest Loser

Bonsai Island Paradise

Though it’s not really a bonsai if it’s in the ground, this one is a very close cousin. This photo and all the photos in this post are from Stone Garden. Our last post was our first ever on Korean bonsai, and, as one thing leads to another, here’s our second post on Korean bonsai. This time the bonsai reside at a place called Stone Garden, which happens to be on an island just south of South Korea and due west of Japan’s Kyushu Island. The island’s name is Jeju and judging by the photo and text at the bottom … Continue reading Bonsai Island Paradise

A Compelling First Look

This photo of a Shimpaku that appears to be growing out of the side of a lava rock, came out better than most of the photos from Korea Bonsai Museum’s Exhibition at theplace gallery. Though some of the trunk is too dark to allow for any detail, the lower section is pretty good. Good enough to show off the rich cinnamon bark that you often find on Shimpaku. I realize we have never featured bonsai from Korea. An oversight for sure. Once it dawned on me to do something about this oversight, it turned out that there is a little … Continue reading A Compelling First Look