Abstract Bonsai & Peace in Our Time

A European bonsai with a Japanese touch. This massive juniper with its wildly sculpted deadwood is reminiscent of bonsai you’d see in Japan in the 80s and 90s. Right down to the quality Japanese pot (unless it’s a Chinese knockoff). The artist is Carlos van der Vaart. Taking the bonsai scene by storm There was a time not very long ago when bonsai with a heavy reliance on sculpted deadwood took the bonsai scene by storm. Rather than attempting to ‘make your bonsai look like a tree’ (John Naka’s famous dictum) these more abstract trees were the result of a … Continue reading Abstract Bonsai & Peace in Our Time

Weekly Wire Six: A Little Tipsy

More fall color. There’s something about the fiery brilliance of fall color. Both the colors and the shape of this Japanese maple are reminiscent of the large Sugar maples that grow around here in Vermont. The photo is from Reiner Vollmari’s facebook page. The Windy City. Next time you’re in Chicago you can visit the bonsai collection at the Chicago Botanic Garden. From what I can see from their website, it looks like a great display area with some quality trees. They claim to have “one of the best public collections of bonsai in the world” which may be … Continue reading Weekly Wire Six: A Little Tipsy

Your Fate is in Their Hands

Michael Hagedorn (our alphabetically first judge) worked on this Japanese white pine before his teacher, Shinji Suzuki entered it in the famous Kokufu show. You can visit Michael’s Crataegus Bonsai (one of my all time favorite bonsai blogs) for the whole story. Michael is the author of Post-Dated – The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk. Bonsai from Scratch Contest: it’s time to meet the judges All the images have been sorted and sized and sent to the judges. Now it’s their turn, so I thought it might be a good idea to introduce them. In alphabetical order, they are: … Continue reading Your Fate is in Their Hands

Fishing for Bonsai Muscle

European olives are often resplendent with character as well as muscle and this one is certainly no exception (to say the least). I found it on flickr and then, one thing led to another (see Gone fishing below) and to the conclusion that this tree belongs to Luis Vallejo (though I couldn’t find evidence on his very attractive but oh-so-slow site). Bonsai muscle There’s something grand about bonsai with thick, powerful trunks. Assuming that I’m not the only one that feels this way, here are three exceptional bonsai (that also happen to be quite muscular) for your enjoyment. Gone fishing … Continue reading Fishing for Bonsai Muscle

Bonsai Bark’s Weekly Wire #5

Loud and clear. This magnificent Fukien tea and it’s perfect pot speak for themselves, so I won’t say anything. Except that it’s from Taiwan Bonsai World (facebook), the botanical name is Carmona microphylla and the artist is HUANG, Qing-Quan. Post your upcoming events here (in the comments below) and we’ll feature them in our next Weekly Wire. Most calendars on bonsai sites only run through this year, and don’t have much in the way of events this time of year anyway. It would be good if people would start putting up next year’s events (a few have begun, but … Continue reading Bonsai Bark’s Weekly Wire #5

Bunjin Bonsai Bliss

Unfinished, but oh so wild and wonderful. I wonder what this Scot’s pine bunjin beauty looked like before it was collected somewhere in the wilds of Sweden. It belongs to Muaro Stemberger. It’s from his facebook page. Mauro also has a website. It’s called Italian Bonsai Dream. Bunjin or Literati, bonsai elegance by any name The following is from something I wrote for The Magician: The Bonsai Art of Kimura. “Bunjin style bonsai originated in China among scholars and artist who were known as literati, which is another name for bunjin. Originally, literati style bonsai – which dates back to … Continue reading Bunjin Bonsai Bliss

Displaying Your Favorite Bonsai

Enter your favorite bonsai in the 2012 US National Bonsai Exhibition Have you thought about entering your bonsai in next year‘s US National Bonsai Exhibition? Why not? Not only will it focus your mind on your bonsai, but you’ll no doubt learn something in the process. Not to mention that, if your tree is accepted, it will show up in the 2012 Exhibition Album. And then, there’s always the chance you could win something. You can contact Bill Valavanis for details: WNV@internationalbonsai.com Even you if don’t enter, this is a good time to start planning your visit. 2008 & 2010 … Continue reading Displaying Your Favorite Bonsai

Weekly Wire #4

The Adachi Museum Garden is featured the Japan Journey’s Gardens of Japan tour next month (Nov 11-22). Though I’ve never been to the Adachi gardens, judging from the photos, I just might agree with those who say it’s among the world’s most glorious gardens; Japanese or otherwise. Bonsai clubs. Looking for a Bonsai Club near you? Here’s the ABS Bonsai Club Directory. Calendars. Our 2012 Bonsai calendars are coming soon. Stay posted. The Mid-Atlantic 2012 Spring Festival is scheduled for April 20-22. This excellent show has long been a premier East Coast bonsai event. … Continue reading Weekly Wire #4

Blazing Bonsai Gallery

The swirl of color and freakishly wild and wonderful form, belongs to Dan Robinson. It’s from Will Hiltz brilliant book (Gnarly Branches, Ancient Trees) about Dan and his trees (this one is a Bald cypress, one of the handful a few deciduous conifers on this planet). It’s that time of year… This brilliant Boston ivy appears on the cover of Bonsai Today issue 68 and is part of a gorgeous autumn color gallery (Bonsai Today back issues are currently 70% off at Stone Lantern). A multi-hued Trident maple forest from the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum’s North American Collection. … Continue reading Blazing Bonsai Gallery

Bonsai Bark Weekly Wire #3

This photo of Kobayashi Nursery comes from Soh-Ju-En Satsuki Bonsai. I assume it’s Kunio Kobayashi*** (he’s won awards for Satsuki bonsai), but my research team (that’s me) is a little over-worked right now and is having trouble finding time, so we’ll have to leave it at that. ***Thanks to Marc (see comments below) we now know that this photo is of Kobayashi Sangyo Satsuki Bonsai Nursery and is not Kunio Kobayashi’s. Do your tools look like this? If not, then here’s a hot tip on how you can make it happen: visit Cheng, Cheng-Kung’s most excellent website (he’s one … Continue reading Bonsai Bark Weekly Wire #3