Bonsai on Broomstick Bicycle

My best guess is that most of you will appreciate the inventiveness and the humor expressed in this mixed-media bonsai creation, though perhaps a few purists will take offense. It’s by Miyazato Rintaro (thanks to Colin Lewis for sharing it). You can find it and the rest of the photos in this post on Mr Rintaro’s facebook photos. A little more conventional, but still… the drum pot and the way the soil is mounded so high, the relaxed simplicity of the tree. You get the idea. Not mixed-media, but not so conventional. One base, one root system, two … Continue reading Bonsai on Broomstick Bicycle

A Remarkable Bonsai, Two Questions & the Boreal Forest

The inspiration for this post arouse when I stumbled upon this remarkable tree on facebook. It belongs to Colin Lewis. Here’s his caption: “Colorado blue spruce, acquired 2008 from Harold Sasaki. Styled 2011-2012. Pot custom made by my old friend Dan Barton, 2013. I’m letting it grow this year to refresh some old congested areas. Maybe I’ll show it in 2016…” Le raison d’être for this post is the tree above. More accurately, the tree and the pot. Both are delightful and together, even more delightful. However, and in spite of the magic of the bonsai above, two questions arise. … Continue reading A Remarkable Bonsai, Two Questions & the Boreal Forest

Winners! Part 1

The National Award, Finest Bonsai Masterpiece. American Elm. Suthin Sukolosovisit. We might as well start at the top. Not only is it a great broom style bonsai and the award couldn’t have gone to a more accomplished bonsai artist, but it’s the leaf size that must have caused a double take by anyone who knows American elms (see below). Bill Valavanis has posted all the winning bonsai from the 4th U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition, so there’s really no need stay here unless you want to suffer through my remarks (and view photos that were slightly enlarged to fit our format). … Continue reading Winners! Part 1

Bonsai That Speak for Themselves

Rugged natural beauty refined by the eye and hand of man (something like that anyway). The tree and photo belong to Colin Lewis. You can see more good stuff on his website. All the bonsai in this post belong to Colin Lewis. Colin is a transplanted Brit who now finds himself working and living on the coast of Maine. You can find him there too (at his Ho Yoku School of Bonsai) if you would like study with someone who know their stuff I won’t say much about Colin’s bonsai, rather let them speak for themselves. My best guess is … Continue reading Bonsai That Speak for Themselves

Hustling to Keep Up

I don’t think you’ll see plantings quite this distinctively unusual very often. Not that all good bonsai aren’t unique, just that this one is very unique (and no doubt very heavy too). It’s by Colin Lewis, who happens to be one of the featured artists at the LSBF 2013 convention (below). Bonsai Calendar. We seem to be featuring bonsai events almost weekly now. It’s never was our intention to turn Bark into a bonsai calendar, but still, reminding you of events (and maybe even encouraging you to take the leap and attend one or two) seems like a good thing … Continue reading Hustling to Keep Up

Blowing in the Wind

The sublime windswept landscape planting is from Robert Steven’s now classic Vision of My Soul. The species of the trees is Dyospryros montana (Mountain persimmon is one of several English names). A very quick search will reveal that there are precious few good windswept bonsai. At least on the web. I suspect there are several reasons for this. First, it’s time consuming to make a superb windswept like the one above. All those little branches need to be wired. Second, you have to understand how the wind works on trees. This requires some study and paying attention to detail. Not … Continue reading Blowing in the Wind

A Solution to a Nonexistent Problem

If you pitch your tent in the Naturalistic Bonsai camp, then it’s probably too late to suggest you avert your eyes. So… as long as you are looking at this remarkable tree, I’ll just comment on how the static perfectly groomed crown seems to contrast with the swirling movement in the perfectly groomed deadwood. Something like that. The artist is Minoru Akiyama, who is one of the headliners at this year’s Mid Atlantic (scroll down a little for more info). It’s that time of year. You can tell because every other post these days features a few big bonsai events … Continue reading A Solution to a Nonexistent Problem