Buttonwoods, Books & Bonsai Wire

This powerfully compact Buttonwood belongs to Nacho Marin, as do all four Buttonwood bonsai shown here. Continuing with yesterday’s Buttonwood theme, while we pack for our journey back to the real world… all four trees shown belong to Nacho Marin and were featured on Bark in February, 2015. With Buttonwoods it’s nature that does the real work. Humans find them, dig them, pot them and eliminate branches and other parts that distract from the natural beauty of the tree. But nature does the twisting, turning and scouring by sand and wind that results in such unusual shapes and magnificent deadwood. … Continue reading Buttonwoods, Books & Bonsai Wire

Handle with Care & Only When Sober

I’m not sure how Nacho Marin did this. Carefully I suppose. His caption reads: “Ceiba Stick, drunk, choricia…. 65 cm (25.5″)” BTW, drunk refers to drunken stick (palo borracho*) a common name for Ceiba, and not, you can assume, to Nacho’s condition while working on the tree. I don’t know anything about Ceiba speciosa (aka Chorisia or Silk floss tree) beyond what I just read on Wikipedia. And though you might wonder why anyone would bother to bonsai such a difficult tree, there’s always the challenge that some humans seem to thrive on and perhaps there’s an interest in novelty … Continue reading Handle with Care & Only When Sober

The Best Bonsai Tell Stories

The smaller trunk was blown over in storm and saved when it landed on a tiny rock island. Fortunately, just enough of the roots are intact and a surviving branch has grown up to become the new crown. One of several stories told by this remarkable planting. The artist is Nacho Marin, a frequent presence here on Bark. The best bonsai tell stories. Usually it’s about hostile environments and hardships, though you could have a robust and stately tree that speaks of a more gentle climate and easy living. In the case of the tree above, you can see tough … Continue reading The Best Bonsai Tell Stories

Wraparound Bonsai & Two Great Specials End Tonight

This distinctively unusual Mugo pine received Marco Invernizzi’s Ichiban* Award at the 2008 Art of Bonsai Awards. The artist is Alfredo Salaccione from Italy. If you spend a lot of time looking at bonsai, you might come to appreciate unusual features. Features that make a tree not only interesting, but unique. In the case of the Mugo pine above, there are several that stand out. The most obvious feature, one that immediately catches the eye, is the way the trunk wraps around and frames the tree’s crown. This alone, makes for a very unusual and distinctive bonsai. A bonsai that … Continue reading Wraparound Bonsai & Two Great Specials End Tonight

A Melancólico & Gracioso Walk Among the Bonsai

This powerful and complex bonsai is the handiwork of Nacho Marin. It’s a bit of a long story, but Bonsai Do* provided famous quotes in Spanish with photos of bonsai. The quote with this tree follows: El otoño es un andante melancólico y gracioso que prepara admirablemente el solemne adagio del invierno – Fall is a sad and graceful walk that admirably prepares for the solemn walk of winter. (George Sand). Yesterday it was all Nacho. So we’ll keep the ball rolling in the same direction. This post originally appeared here in January 2015. It was titled ‘Un andante gracioso … Continue reading A Melancólico & Gracioso Walk Among the Bonsai

Michelangelo & Bonsai at Its Best

I’m loving this tree. Even though we know it has been worked by human hands, the link to its natural state hasn’t been lost at all. If anything it has been enhanced. Bonsai at its best! No variety is given, though it looks like a collected juniper. Nacho Marin is someone who was already an artist when he discovered bonsai and who brought his vision, talent and experience to the art. And though people often say that we are all artists, still, most of us will never be Michelangelo,* no matter how hard we try… The images shown here are … Continue reading Michelangelo & Bonsai at Its Best

Heads Up! & Deck the Bonsai

Though most Christmas trees have their charm and some are genuine works of art, still, this has to be one of the best I’ve ever seen. Happy Holidays! This tree by Nacho Marin is one of the best, if not the best, bonsai Christmas tree I’ve seen yet. It’s not the first time we’ve shown it (2013 was first) and it may not be the last. Heads Up! Today is our last day shipping day this week. Orders received by noon Eastern Standard Time will be shipped today. Orders received after noon will be shipped next week. The good news … Continue reading Heads Up! & Deck the Bonsai

Elevated Company, Circling Back from Venezuela to Taiwan

The sheer size and power are of this magnificent tree places it in elevated company. It’s a 50cm (20″) tall Ficus microcarpa by one of our favorite South American bonsai artists, Nacho Marin of Venezuela. The pot is by John Evans from the USA. Though this post was inspired by Nacho Marin’s powerful Ficus (above) and though Nacho is South American, when we start looking at Ficus bonsai we seem to circle back to Taiwan. In this case, much of the elevated company (mentioned in the caption above) comes from that island nation. It doesn’t hurt that they have the … Continue reading Elevated Company, Circling Back from Venezuela to Taiwan

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Beast of the Southern Wild. I don’t know the dimensions of this monster, but I do know its name. It’s a Pithecellobium unguis (Catclaw blackbird), a genus and species completely new to me (and probably new to you too). I also know that this particular bonsai is about as unique as they get with nature doing most of the work and Nacho Marin providing the finishing touches. I surrender. Incessant sub zero temperatures (Fahrenheit folks), snow every other day and now a nasty head cold. But still, it could be worse. In fact, it is worse. In Boston that is, … Continue reading Beasts of the Southern Wild

With Buttonwood Bonsai, Nature Does the Real Work

This powerfully compact Buttonwood belongs to Nacho Marin, as do all four Buttonwood bonsai shown here. With Buttonwood bonsai it’s nature that does the real work. Humans find them, dig them, pot them and eliminate branches and other parts that distract from the natural beauty of the tree (ideally, at least). But nature does the twisting, turning and scouring by sand and wind that results in such unusual shapes and magnificent deadwood. I’m told* that much of this shaping and scouring happens during hurricanes and tropical storms. I’ve even heard that Buttonwoods are sometimes violently uprooted and blown to new … Continue reading With Buttonwood Bonsai, Nature Does the Real Work