Cold Mountain Bonsai

You might pass this one over at first glance, but the spectacular pot, the deeply striated bark and the overall simplicity and naturalness are worth another look. Today is the long drive home. No time to put together a new post, so we’ll take one more foray into our archives. This one first appeared in November 2012. It’s one I particularly like. Not for what I have to say, but the for simple, unique beauty and naturalness of the bonsai. Have we been overly influenced by Japanese bonsai? When you look at the trees in this post there’s a sense … Continue reading Cold Mountain Bonsai

American Tropical Jewel

Buttonwood by Ed Trout. The photo is from The Art of Bonsai Project. * I’m headed out for a brief Independence Day respite, so we’ll take the easy way out and plunder our archives once again. This one is from August 2011 (assuming we haven’t reposted it since then – there’s this issue with memory). I can think of two good reasons to choose it: 1. It’s tropical and it feels like the tropics lately here in northern Vermont where extended hot weather is rare indeed, and 2. Buttonwoods are an American tree and the most American of holidays is … Continue reading American Tropical Jewel

Omiya & Tiny Assassins

Goyomatsu. Japanese white pine from the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum’s gallery. The photos shown here are from the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, with the exception of one unrelated photo (can you guess which one?). I took the easy path today and borrowed the content shown here from a post we did back in May 2012. Elegance. I’ve never been to the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, but if the elegance of the display shown here is any indication, maybe I should start saving my yen. Assassins. Bonsai Mary (aka Mary Miller) has a good article on beneficial insects. There’s one … Continue reading Omiya & Tiny Assassins

Japanese Black Pine – Rushing the Future

A Japanese black pine after some serious trimming and cleaning up. If you look at the photo just below, you might notice that there has been some serious needle reduction too. The tree and the photos in this post belong to Boon Manakitivipart (aka Bonsai Boon). The first two photos shown here provide a simple one day (or thereabouts) before and after on a Japanese black pine. As you can see it’s a remarkable tree. I was especially taken with the perfectly striated bark and the way it seamlessly flows into the nebari. Another thing that struck me about this … Continue reading Japanese Black Pine – Rushing the Future

Ezo Spruce by Any Other Name…

One glance at this Ezo spruce and you know it belongs to Walter Pall. Walter sometimes refers to this natural looking untouched-by-human-hands style as ‘naturalistic bonsai,’ though if you go to Walter’s Bonsai Adventures blog where this photo is from, you’ll see just how touched-by-human-hands it actually was. And just how accomplished Walter is at turning pedestrian bonsai into naturalistic gems. Ezo spruce are sometimes referred to as Jezo or Yezo spruce (Picea jezoensis or Picea yezoensis) and even Sakhalin spruce, though that’s a really a different species (Picea glenii). Most (or perhaps all) of the specimen quality Ezo bonsai in … Continue reading Ezo Spruce by Any Other Name…

A Pencil and Paper, and a Desire to Improve Your Eye for Bonsai Design

Rococo bonsai. If you decide to try your hand at drawing bonsai, my guess is that the results won’t look a lot like this. We’ve featured this illustration by Ruben Roig at least twice (here and here), but it’s been a long time and Ruben’s skills are exceptional, so it’s worth another look. Consider this post an encouragement for you to try your hand at drawing bonsai (that’s three in row for those of you who love the English language). Or lacking that, you can simply enjoy these illustrations by people who excel at the art of drawing bonsai. There … Continue reading A Pencil and Paper, and a Desire to Improve Your Eye for Bonsai Design

Twisted & Otherwise Abused

Man made twisting. This little Shimpaku juniper was grown (in Japan) and shaped by human hands. Whoever grew it did a great job at creating a natural effect – it’s almost impossible to mimic the raw and rugged look that nature sometimes comes up with after hundreds of years of stressful conditions. The final styling was done by Masahiko Kimura. You can find this photo and the chapter that shows Kimura shaping this tree in The Magician, the Bonsai Art of Kimura 2. The following photos are from a post titled Creating Twisted Juniper on a blog that I happily … Continue reading Twisted & Otherwise Abused

Shape Shifting

Robert Steven’s simulation of a juniper submitted by Peter Woosley. Peter’s original is below. Last post we borrowed from our archives and featured the artistry of Robert Steven. Might as well follow up with more archival Robert (from April, 2011). Before we start, a quick heads up with a nod to our sponsor (while staying on topic): We are down to less than 200 copies of our Masters Series Juniper bonsai book, and, as it turns out, we are currently running a 25% off sale on all of our books. Enough said. A surprising shift Robert fooled me (once again). … Continue reading Shape Shifting

Useful Tips for Those of Us Stuck in Beginner Level Bonsai Skills

Robert’s digital simulation of a Ficus nerifolia that was submitted by Tom Kreugl. Busy traveling so we’ll dig up another post from our vast archival past. This one is from September, 2010. It’s one of numerous Robert Steven critiques that provide simple lessons in bonsai design, with several useful tips. I think it’s particularly good for beginners and those of us who have been stuck with beginner level skills for too long (all of Robert’s critiques are good for beginners and for more advanced enthusiasts too). While we’re talking about Robert Steven, this might a good place to mention … Continue reading Useful Tips for Those of Us Stuck in Beginner Level Bonsai Skills

A Fascinating Mix of Insight & Opinion

Unfinished, but 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. Traveling once again, so we’ll resume our archival explorations. This one, originally titled Bunjin Bonsai Bliss is from October, 2011 (with some current editing and elaboration), though any Bark discussion of Bunjin warrants a mention of Moving Out of the Bonsai Mainstream with a Deft and Delicate Touch (from December 2012), whose comments are the longest … Continue reading A Fascinating Mix of Insight & Opinion