Styling

Hanging off a Cliff Somewhere in the Alps

This  very distinctive bonsai belongs to Mauro Stemberger. The rock was made by Erik Križovenský, a master of unique pots and other creative vessels for planting bonsai. No mention is made of the type tree, but it looks like some type of Juniper. I cropped Mauro’s original photo (below) to get a closer look and to eliminate some background noise It’s past due time to revisit Mauro Stemberger, an old favorite here on Bark. If you’d like to see more of what Mauro is up to you can visit him on facebook and on his Italian Bonsai Dream website. You can also visit … Continue reading Hanging off a Cliff Somewhere in the Alps

Size Matters & Small Is Beautiful

Robert Steven’s digitally enhanced version of a Trident maple by Carl Morrow (the photo Carl submitted is below) Continuing with the bonsai wisdom of Robert Steven, this was one of our earliest of his famous critiques (September, 2010). I’ve added the copy just below today, but Robert’s expert comments are exactly as wrote them eight years ago The right pot can have a transformative effect on a bonsai.  This includes the right size pot. A common mistake many of us make when we start, is over-potting trees. The mistaken view  that trees need massive amounts of soil to thrive and grow is common and it can take a … Continue reading Size Matters & Small Is Beautiful

A Most Unusual & Provocative Bonsai Extravaganza

I don’t know how big this planting is, though I’m leaning toward pretty big. Impressive too with its sophisticated sense of depth (larger trees in front and smaller toward the back). Not to overlook the very large pot with its flowing lines and no doubt hefty price tag. This photo and the next three below are from Bill Valavanis’ blog Continuing with yesterday’s mixed media bonsai theme, this one is from Robert Steven’s 2014 1st International Bonsai Biennale. At the time we referred to it as the most unusual and provocative bonsai extravaganza ever TWO NEW TOOL SPECIALS Famous Roshi BONSAI Tools 30% … Continue reading A Most Unusual & Provocative Bonsai Extravaganza

25% – 75% off Bonsai Items Special Ends Tonight

SUMMER SPECIAL ENDS TONIGHT Hundreds of BONSAI & GARDEN Items 25% to 75% off List Prices – this amounts to about half of our total inventory Stonelantern.com SPECIAL ENDS at 11:59pm EDT Tonight, Monday, July 23rd   Bonsai Tools Bonsai Wire   Bonsai Books   Fertilizers    High Impact Plastic Bonsai Pots   Bonsai Soil   and much more 25% TO 75% OFF LIST PRICES STONELANTERN.COM SPECIAL ENDS at 11:59pm EDT Tonight, Monday, July 23rd FREE Shipping on Continental U.S. orders 75.00 or more but only if you choose free shipping when you check out StoneLantern.com

Bonsai Art & Ink Painting – A Perfect Intersection

Something new under the sun! Sumi artist Sonia Stella’s  caption reads… “Bonsai by Sandro Segneri and modern ink by me” I’m always a little stoked when we discover a new bonsai artist (quoted from our July 14th post).  Now we can double down on that with today’s discovery of Sonia Stella’s Bonsai Art & Ink Painting – Sakura Studio. Or maybe triple down, with the added excitement of discovering a perfect intersection of two arts performed at such a high level. MID SUMMER SPECIAL ENDS TONIGHT 25% TO 75% OFF LIST PRICE ON HUNDREDS OF BONSAI ITEMS SPECIAL ENDS TONIGHT, MONDAY AT 11:59PM EDT – … Continue reading Bonsai Art & Ink Painting – A Perfect Intersection

Superior Bonsai Deserve a Superior Turntable

Everything looks good on a Green T turntable and this luscious azalea in full flower is no exception (it will look even better on with the new green rims – see below). Here’s part of the caption that the folks at Green T wrote with this photo… “@bonsaiwarsaw loves azaleas! This variety of bonsai require lots of special care and dedication and we are glad that such a young innovative bonsai artist is trusting Green T to do his best!” I cropped the original photo to feature just the tree. The uncropped version is below. Just in case you missed … Continue reading Superior Bonsai Deserve a Superior Turntable

The Tallest Trees in the World Brought Down to Bonsai Size

Closeup of a California Coast redwood from Bonsai Mirai’s collection. It’s interesting that most Redwood bonsai tend to be so stocky, given that that they are the tallest trees in the world. You can see the photo of the whole tree below Continuing from yesterday with Bonsai Mirai,the home of what must be the largest and most impressive collection of collected bonsai (yamadori) in the country. Today it’s California’s Coast redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) There are so many iconic North American trees. In fact, and at the risk of just a little chauvinism, our rich array of trees just might be the most … Continue reading The Tallest Trees in the World Brought Down to Bonsai Size

Cross Country Bonsai Wagon

One of several bonsai recently posted by Bonsai Mirai. No varieties were given for any of the trees shown here (on social media*), but we do know that they belong to Ryan Neil. If you’d like to know more about these trees and you have time, you can sort through the Mirai website. Even if you don’t find all the ones shown here, you’ll see many of the very best American yamadori (collected from the wild) trees. *Bonsai Mirai’s fb timeline Just in case you forgot, this post can serve as another reminder about the rapidly approaching 6th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition. It’s the one bonsai event … Continue reading Cross Country Bonsai Wagon

Bonsai at the Intersection of Environmental Art, Durational Art, Performance, Architecture, and Design

There’s more than the tree to bonsai. This photo with the brilliantly conceived pot and stand – and the way they both emphasize and elevate (literally) the tree – perfectly illustrates this point. It’s from a special event flyer posted by Pacific Bonsai Museum titled LAB, Living Art of Bonsai. The date is August 4th. The rest of the details are here This event looks and sounds so compelling that if it weren’t for previous unbreakable commitments, I’d be making my reservations right now. But perhaps you can be lucky! Here’s part of the copy from the Pacific Bonsai Museum about the upcoming LAB… “In … Continue reading Bonsai at the Intersection of Environmental Art, Durational Art, Performance, Architecture, and Design

Bonsai Pioneer Mas Ishii & Michael Bonsai

Here’s Michael’s (Michael Bonsai) caption for this tree… “I was “craving” to style my 80 year old Masaru-Ishii grafted juniper. I’ve never been really happy how it was prior styled. – This is the first time I really like the outcome, because I styled it myself and was motived after a long stretch of engineering and work and not being able to do “hands on” bonsai.” I cropped Michael’s photo (see below) for a closer look I’ve long appreciated the quality of Michael Bonsai’s photos. And his trees. This one originated with Mr Masaru Ishii (now deceased), grafting master (especially … Continue reading Bonsai Pioneer Mas Ishii & Michael Bonsai