Bonsai Yogi

A little change of pace. We almost always just focus on bonsai and avoid photos that feature people (that’s facebook’s job), but this one is just too good to pass up. The peaceful Bonsai Yogi is Gedemerta (aka Gede Merta) of Bonsai Bali. I cropped this photo (with apologies to Scott Jackson and his great tattoo). The uncropped version is here. So. I’m mentally packing my bags for Bali. I could sweep floors and wash dishes in exchange for bonsai lessons. Maybe a little contemplation instruction too, though I’m not sure how long I can sit on the ground with … Continue reading Bonsai Yogi

Random Shots

I believe this photo came from Certre, though I don’t know who the artist is. In any case, it’s a powerful full cascade with a strong trunk, good movement and great pot. I’m traveling again and pressed for time, so I’ll make it brief. I pulled the photos for this post from a couple old folders of random shots. Unfortunately, some are poorly labeled and I’ve forgotten where they came from. Maybe someone out there can help with identification. This delightfully showy maverick is labeled Empirreken (nothing turned up on google). Lot’s of time and no small amount of … Continue reading Random Shots

Bonsai In Black & White

Japanese white pine. You can find the color version of this tree on the cover of our Masters’ Series Pine book and on the cover of Bonsai Today issue number 2. The black and white version is the same image with the color photoshoped out. Black and white? I don’t have any answers, though there does seem to be something compelling about a good black and white photo. Maybe the stark quality of black and white highlights features that we might otherwise miss. Or…? Here’s a good one from flickr. It’s titled Black and white bonsai tree, The Huntington … Continue reading Bonsai In Black & White

Snake Dance & Lazy Posting

Snake Dance by Gede Merta of Bonsaibali. It’s a Pemphis acidula. This photo above shows a truly remarkable tree. Enough said. Or…, maybe not. If you look below you’ll see the photo as it originally appeared (on facebook). Clearly, the photo above, without the distracting writing, better shows off the tree. Still, it’s hard to fault Mr. Gede Merta for displaying his name so prominently. Otherwise, you’ll no doubt find the photo displayed on facebook free from any attribution, and in the worse cases, free from any suggestion that the tree might not belong to the person posting the tree … Continue reading Snake Dance & Lazy Posting

Weekly Wire: Nifty Nebari, Bonsai Cloud & What Happened to Fresno?

Pemphis acidula by Gedemerta Bonsaibali. For a while now, facebook has been inundated with bonsai by Gedemerta. Turns out, that’s a good thing if you like exciting tropical bonsai. If you’re not friends on facebook, you can see more of Gede Merta’s trees on Beial blog (on facebook it’s Gedemerta; on Beial it’s Gede Merta). Bonsai from Scratch prizes Are there any winners out there who haven’t collected their prizes yet? If so, please contact me at wayne@stonelantern.com. Do you have an upcoming bonsai event that you want to promote? Let us know and we’ll publish it for you. wayne@stonelantern.com. … Continue reading Weekly Wire: Nifty Nebari, Bonsai Cloud & What Happened to Fresno?

Naturally Dramatic Bonsai

A particularly dramatic and complex Pemphis acidula. Not that Pemphis don’t tend to be dramatic anyway, but this one is almost unrivaled. It was collected and styled by Gedemerta. Height 82cm (32″). Continuing from yesterday with more bonsai by Gedemerta, we’ll borrow a few photos from our archives (June, 2015). All but one of the trees here are Pemphis acidula which has to be one of the most naturally dramatic trees in the world. It’s a safe bet that they were all collected from the wild. In fact, it might not be too far fetched to assume that Pemphis bonsai only originate in the wild, … Continue reading Naturally Dramatic Bonsai

An Old Bonsai Favorite

If you know Gedemerta’s bonsai, you’ll recognize this as one of his many Pemphis acidula. The rough bark, preponderance of deadwood and the tiny leaves give it away The photos shown here are from an old favorite of ours, Gedemerta Bonsai Bali. Though I just discovered these (on facebook of course), I also just noticed they date all the way back to 2012, so they may be familiar to some of you. In fact, at least one of them has been shown here on Bark (the Barbados cherry, but with a different pot) and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s more than one. MID-WINTER … Continue reading An Old Bonsai Favorite

Silky Smooth

We cropped the original photo (just below) so we could get a closer look at both the extraordinary pot and the heart of this magnificent tree. We don’t know the variety, but thanks to Silky Jemiran, we do know that the owner is Tri Djoko Endro Susilo. Yesterday’s Root Over Rock Bonsai with Sherlock Holmes featured a handful of excellent tropical bonsai photos that we borrowed from Silky Jemiran. We liked what we saw, so we’ll just keep going in the same direction. As we mentioned yesterday, we liked Silky’s habit of listing the owner of each tree (something that is often lacking on social media), and though it turns out … Continue reading Silky Smooth

What’s Wrong with this Picture?

Snake Dance by Gedemerta (with a distracting bright spot that someone has added). As you can see, this Pemphis acidula is an exceptional bonsai. It’s also famous. We’ve featured it at least twice and it’s all over facebook and elsewhere. Many of the artists who style these trees are professionals trying to make a living. What’s wrong (in addition to the unnecessary bright spot)? This photo was posted on facebook by someone who goes by Aus Bonsai, one of several regulars who put up photos of bonsai. There are many others, including one self-named Bonsai Master. Facebook is more than just … Continue reading What’s Wrong with this Picture?

Weeky Wire: World Bonsai Day, Free Bonsai Wire, Kokufu, Boon’s Tips & Much More

Who could ask for more? It wasn’t too long ago we led off a Weekly Wire with a Gedemerta Bonsaibali tree. Now, we’ve gone and done it again. I’m guessing you can see why. Aside from the wildly expressive deadwood, the well-aged textured beauty of the bark, the trunk’s powerful base and perfect taper, the tree’s radiant health, the near perfect play between balance and movement; the photo is also very well done. Who could ask for more? FREE! FREE WIRE, SCISSORS, TOOL CLEANING BLOCKS & CUT PASTE WHEN YOU ORDER FROM STONE LANTERN… …but only if you enter … Continue reading Weeky Wire: World Bonsai Day, Free Bonsai Wire, Kokufu, Boon’s Tips & Much More