Fifth Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Acer palmatum (Japanese maple) by Mars Healey of the Greater Hartford Bonsai Society. Keep ’em coming We still need at least two more to make our minimum (I had to reject two that were just photos of trees). So ga’head and send us yours. Really! Contest details here Pirates At least one blog has been pirating our posts, lock stock and barrel; but without our links and without any attribution to bonsai bark, or Stone Lantern. If you are reading this on any website or blog that is not ours, and is not attributed to us, then it has been … Continue reading Fifth Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Fourth Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Bristlecone teapot, by Mike Viljak. Here’s what Mike has to say about it: “Attached is a photo of a bristlecone-inspired teapot I made out of porcelain. The outside is glazed in raw wood ash, but fired in a gas kiln. The base is made of local clay I collected. When doing both ceramic art and bonsai, the two tend to inform each other in lots of ways.” There’s still time for you to enter But don’t wait too long. Entries are coming in at a brisk pace, so we’ll probably close the contest pretty soon (my best guess is about … Continue reading Fourth Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Third Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Jimmy Le sent this entry in. He didn’t say anything about the medium or really anything at all, except “Here’s my entry Wayne.” If there’s anything else you’d like to say Jimmy, please don’t hesitate. Update: Jimmy just sent this (3/10/10): “I didn’t realize i needed to email a description as well, but this sketch was done while I was sitting in class, I was inspired to draw this because of a Hollywood Juniper i saw at Bonsai West in Littleton Massachusetts.” Our $100.00 Bonsai Art Contest Back in mid-February we started yet another contest. This one has generous prizes; … Continue reading Third Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Second Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

Here’s Ken To’s entry. And here’s what Ken has to say about it: “Here is my entry for the art contest. This is a wire bonsai sculpture made entirely from 24 gauge wire. It’s planted in a high quality Japanese mame bonsai pot. I made this as a surprise present for my wife on Valentine’s day. Just in time for the contest! “ Our $100.00 Bonsai Art Contest Back in mid-February we started yet another contest. This one has generous prizes; generous enough to maybe motivate you to enter (see below). Check out the details here and give it a … Continue reading Second Entry $100 Bonsai Art Contest

$25 Contest: Identify This Tree

Identify this tree and win Be the first to tell us what kind of tree this is, and who the artist is, and we will give you a $25.00 gift certificate to Stone Lantern. You can post your answers in the comments below. We haven’t forgotten our other contest Though we haven’t done anything about it yet (I’m still traveling), we have received several entries to our $100 Bonsai Art Contest. We’ll start posting entries when we get back next week. Meanwhile, don’t be shy; send us your entry.

Snow!

Look familiar? The photo is from the editorial page, Bonsai Today issue 56. The snow is courtesy of Mother Nature. When the whole world (well, almost) turned white Someone told me that 49 of the 50 US states had snow this winter. In northern Vermont, we don’t think much of it. But we don’t leave our bonsai out in the snow like in this photo. At least not in the dead of winter when it’s way too cold for that. The photo above is from Japan. In much of Japan you can leave your hardy trees out most, or all, … Continue reading Snow!

Beech Forests: in a Pot or on a Slab

This somewhat faded image of a somewhat amazing Japanese beech forest is from Bonsai Today issue number 4 (long out of print). The popularity of beech forests In Japan, Japanese beech (Fagus crenata) have long been a favorite for forest plantings. Their smooth almost white bark, fairly small leaves, fine branching and easy-to-work-with toughness, makes them a natural for bonsai. Here in the you not be able to find any Japanese beech, but don’t despair, most of the principles can be applied to other deciduous trees. This not-so-faded slab planting is from Bonsai Today issue 99 (still available). See below … Continue reading Beech Forests: in a Pot or on a Slab

In Search of the Perfect Nebari #8

Do you like this nebari, or is it a bit much? If you just look at the bottom photo, does the nebari seem to strong for the trunk? That’s the way it strikes me, but when I look at the whole tree, it works just fine. The image is a whole page from Bonsai Today issue 63. Pirates At least one blog has been pirating our posts, lock stock and barrel; but without our links and without any attribution to bonsai bark, or Stone Lantern. If you are reading this on any website or blog that is not ours, and … Continue reading In Search of the Perfect Nebari #8

$100 Bonsai Art Contest: Enter & Win!

Disembodied shoulder, arm, hand and bonsai by Frank Kelly of the Canberra Bonsai Society. Our Bonsai Art Contest is off to good start! Enter and win! Send us your bonsai drawing or painting or photo of a bonsai sculpture (or…?) and you just might win. Prizes First prize is a $60 gift certificate to Stone Lantern. Second prize $30 gift certificate. Third prize $10 gift certificate. Rules The contest will be closed when we have at least ten entrants (if entries are still coming in when we receive 10, we may keep it open a little longer). The drawing (or … Continue reading $100 Bonsai Art Contest: Enter & Win!

Eccentric Bonsai: Shinji Suzuki’s Cascade Juniper

The styling progression on this cascade Shimpaku juniper by Shinji Suzuki is remarkable (you can see the whole step by step progression in our Juniper book). So is the end result. Remarkable and very unusual. Shinji Suzuki styled it when he was 24 years old. I wonder if he would do it differently now. It’s not just the wild mixed interlocking swirls of live and dead wood… … nor is it just the very long piece of deadwood that runs through the center like a dagger, all the way from near the top to the very bottom… nor the delicate … Continue reading Eccentric Bonsai: Shinji Suzuki’s Cascade Juniper