BUNJINJOURNAL.COM

Naked Trees - Winter Silhouettes

Michelle — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:06:32 GMT

Just back from the L.A. Arboretum... another amazing show hosted by Baikoen (Bonsai Kenkyokai, est. 1964).

Kay Komai (on the left) has been there for the whole journey. The history of this club is fabulous - for another post. Dave Woodall is on the right.

My two favorite exhibits were created by Cheryl Manning (left) and Elliot Farkas (right).

Cheryl's Ume.

Flowers opening on the Ume.

Elliot's Twisted Pomegranate.

Accent shown with the Pomegranate.

...given the title of this post, if you didn't expect to see trees with no clothes, er, I mean leaves on, what did you think trees wear to sleep in, yesterday's leaves perhaps? not when brand new fresh leaves are right around the corner.

still with me?

Michelle — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:22:34 GMT

Just Kidding! I didn't forget about you all, even through it has been soooooo LONG.

It's New Year's Eve and I have big plans for 2012 starting to fall into place: The Shohin convention in Santa Nella is a month away, then there is the California Bonsai Society's 55th Convention in Anaheim in April, then June will be the biggest frenzy heading to the 3rd U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition in Rochester, NY, then rounding back to the BCI 50th Anniversary Event in Denver, Bonsai in the Rockies, (almost a homecoming since I grew up in Denver and Colorado Springs,) then September in Portland, then GSBF, and I'm already getting excited for the 2013, April 19th BCI Convention in Yangzhou, China (我学习汉语很多!）。

I have not been idle the last year, even though I've neglected to post. Photos of my bonsai trees will be added to this site regularly next year, since I've been working so diligently on them I really want to share them. I also finally learned how to shoot and edit quickly decent videos with my little Sony HD camera, so expanding my Youtube Channel will be a fun activity for next year. Bjorvala bonsai studio has set the bar very high in quality bonsai offerings the last few months.

I've been playing mad scientist in my lab, I mean studio, and reorganizing things to be more productive in making many pots in larger quantities and sizes. I'm still making a few occasional pinch pots, but not very often. I'm switching to slab-building and other methods to meet the goals mentioned above of larger output. I have a dedicated e-commerce site in the works, but more on that later ;o).

I recently had a lot of fun conducting a well attended workshop on all things pinch pot for the Bonsai & Beyond Club that meets at the San Diego Botanical Gardens once a month:

And my little ball of fur known as Kibou is all grown up, at least in dog years:

Wishing you a Safe and Happy New Year's Eve.... SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!

it's been awhile...

Michelle — Tue, 10 May 2011 18:28:00 GMT

I know it's been eons since I posted anything on this blog... I'm redesigning my mental workspace, doing some internal remodeling, and generally gearing up to head in a new direction. Artistic journeys, take just as much planning as physical trips, and without the help of Expedia. I've also been very distracted the last 3 months while learning Mandarin Chinese, and with my latest fury project:

Xie Xie pengyoumen, Zaijian. ;o)

Happy January

Michelle — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 00:55:00 GMT

Help is abundant this year around every corner:

My heart goes out to everyone shoveling snow this month, here are a few sunny accents to remind you Spring is on its way...

Best Wishes for 2011

Michelle — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 02:16:00 GMT

Click on the New Year Greeting below to see the video on YouTube:

Wishing You
Peace & Happiness
in 2011

I hope this posting finds everyone well, safe, and hopeful for the new year of possibilities just around the corner.

* * * * * * * * * *

Here is an excerpt from the Prologue of the book I have been working on for the past year, BONSAI TEN, which will be available in the Summer of 2011:

"Bonsai is a direct and personal study of life. It appeals to our fascination with what is immeasurably small and inconceivable large. Through the art of bonsai, a connection is made between artist and tree, an individual and eternal nature, the infinite mind and the persistent voice of our interconnected souls. Bonsai is a small but powerful illustration and visual embodiment of many things including ecosystems, natural processes, energy exchange and work, dedication, applied knowledge, perseverance, humility, kindness, selflessness, compassion, and appreciation. Bonsai contributes to the goal of sustainable peace.

"Learning to decipher and listen to these instructions, messages, and insights through the art and practice of bonsai has been a deeply spiritual experience for me and I want to share it with you. Bonsai gave me an education. When I entered this strange and mysterious artistic phenomena I was unaware of all the rules, the history, the tradition, the undercurrents, the methods, the science, the philosophy… it became a life-seeking quest for answers. It is a fascinating journey and the purpose of this book is to ‘bring back to the tribe’ (The Writer’s Journey) some of the answers that I have found that seem to me to resound with truth.

"Ten years ago I was living in a second floor, north facing condominium near the ocean. The unit had a small balcony. After visiting a botanical garden I fell in love with a grove of ancient Gingko Trees and wondered how I could capture that moment of calm and euphoria that I felt surrounded by those majestic trees, without access to land or a garden with sufficient space to plant my own. The local nursery had a small gingko seedling with maybe 7 or 8 leaves on it planted in a bonsai pot that I immediately brought home and tried to grow… that’s how innocently it all starts. You, my dear reader, have been warned.

"Bonsai changed my life. I made every possible mistake. I read every available book. I talked to every possible ‘expert’. I suggested to my husband that I could be more successful if we just had a real yard, and if I went to Japan to study bonsai I might figure out all the little things that seemed to elude me (both of which he agreed to). In the years that followed I stumbled into a natural process of learning and subsequently learned a way to live my life through answers I would not have come to know otherwise. For example, time cannot be made to speed up so the tree will grow faster. Patience. Time passes quickly enough. Time cannot be made to slow down so the tree will die slower. Acceptance. Making a long term commitment and then sticking with it was a sound lesson for me to learn. Bonsai is a microcosmic textbook to the universe, and offers encouragement for the possibilities for the future. It illustrates that learning is a lifelong enrollment. The teacher is the student, the student is also the teacher. Equilibrium. Balance..."

New Faces of Bonsai...

Michelle — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 01:01:00 GMT

I have just posted a bunch of photos on my facebook page of the Not so New faces that were strolling around the recent GSBF Convention in Santa Clara, and a couple of New ones...

Now that I am finally on facebook (about 3 years later than everybody else, but maybe just fashionably late :o)... please find me and send me a friend request because who doesn't want to have lots of friends, and I love seeing what everyone else is doing. It's so much fun to 'meet' other bonsai fans! (Although facebook is a great way to lose an entire afternoon that should be spent doing something productive, I have found. When will the site post a warning label that it may be hazardous to your occupation?)

Here is a picture of my Vendor Table: (some of the pots may look familiar)

It was a really great Convention, and it was so good to see so many friends together in the same place. I received wonderful feedback on those new pots. I think I'm going in a direction that is worth pursuing. Back to the studio...

Exhibition of 25 New Works

Michelle — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 17:40:00 GMT

(A 'behind the scenes' look at this photo shoot...)

To see some of the pots made in 2008, click here or on the image below.

-- a few from 2007... click here or the image below.

-- a few pots made earlier this year:

(These are now in the collections of Shirley Kavanaugh, Jim Doyle, and other bonsai artists who attended the 2010 Shohin Convention.)

All of these pots are one of a kind, originals - made, photographed, and published here by Michelle Dougherty. Please do not "borrow," "copy," or "steal" any images without first requesting permission from the artist : michelle@bunjinjournal.com

Instant Italian Cypress

Michelle — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 23:19:00 GMT

I'm not usually an advocate of shortcuts or 'instant' anything, but this is just too fun not to share. A wonderful group of folks get together every month and trade ideas about making tray landscapes - everything from Hon Non Bo, Saikei, Succulent Art, trough gardens, topiary, anything that grows in a pot or represents a living landscape. At the last meeting a talented artist, Nancy Reisman, brought to everyone's attention her recent discovery - Home Depot is selling 4" pots of Meyer's Asparagus Fern (Asparagus meyeri) for $3.47 and when trimmed and incorporated next to a rock or landscape feature they look for all the world like Italian Cypress, with no additional work and coming in at about 3 - 6" tall in little groupings, the similarity is uncanny... so I raced over to HD and bought a few...

Before:

After about 20 minutes:

Embarrassingly I will admit I'm still putting together that promised posting of more of Jim Mueller's work, but in the meantime he sent me a most inspiring photo:

I asked him for more information about how he did this and he responded:

"As you might imagine, the process of creating the mountain compositions for my tray landscapes generates a fair amount of stone fragments. In the spirit of resource conservation, I've tried using them to build cairns like this one. The larger stones are held together with hydraulic cement, and smaller ones with silicone aquarium sealant. Happily, the resulting compositions have lots of cracks and internal voids that act as sounding chambers for the falling water. With a little tuning, they can be very musical instruments.To stabilize the stones and maintain the composition while transporting,cleaning, and repotting, I often glue them to a deep blue or green Corian base (salvaged from a neighbor's kitchen countertop business) shaped to fit the bottom of the container.

"I make my cranes with very long legs, so that they can be set deeply into soil, moss, or holes drilled in the rock, as the one in the photo. I was as pleased as you with the effect of this photo. It was taken last Friday at sunrise over Seneca Lake, the largest of the finger lakes in upstate New York. As you can see, it's an inspiring place. I've gathered mosses there,along with lots of ideas for sculptures like this one."

Thanks so much Jim! Here's a preview of that next installment...

And finally, an apology to the email subscribers - the last email was very confusing because the new video was not part of the email, and I made it worse by putting a link to the old video, so please click here to see the New Video (Saikei Made Easy) - Thank you for understanding.

Saikei Made Easy - 3 Minute Video

Michelle — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 01:44:21 GMT

"How To" Video : Number 2 - you may remember my charming first attempt on the making of a pinch pot filmed with the camera that came with this laptop. So here is another 'single take' tutorial, but I've since discovered Windows Movie Maker to add a few effects, an opening page, and some closing credits. My husband also found himself cajoled into providing the voice talent for very little compensation, but ample credit (I drew the line at a Producer credit). Hope you enjoy...

In addition to my very patient husband I would also like to thank my dear friends who suggested a rock collecting trip out to the desert this past weekend, without whom this video would not have been possible (well, not with these rocks, anyway). The Yuha Desert was a sweltering triple digit expanse of undiscovered treasure for we intrepid explorers, thank goodness there was enough food to last until Spring, should we have become stranded.

Here is the transcript from the video: " How to Create a Simple Moss Landscape - Begin by assembling the materials. Today we will use : a turntable, a round black tray, a few rocks, course sand, green moss, and a squirt bottle to keep the moss moist.

"Once everything is on hand try various combinations and arrangements until you find something that appeals to you aesthetically. These rocks were collected in the California desert, but rocks can also be purchased from building supply yards by the pound.

"If necessary add some sand to stabilize the stone, so it rests solidly in the tray. Next position the moss around the stone. It can represent the vegetation of an island or land feature, or simply be part of the composition. Carefully notice the area where the moss surrounds the stone. The idea is to make it appear as though the moss has grown over time, so it is best not to leave any gaps.

"Once the scene is starting to take shape fill in the rest of the tray with iether sand, or use soil if you want to encourage the moss to spread faster to fill in the whole tray. Work out the air gaps with either a chop stick or your fingers. Moss usually requires very good drainage but because this tray is so shallow it does not require drainage holes, the water will simply evaporate. Moss grows best in moist, shady, humid area where it is sheltered from wind and sun. Keep the moss damp, but never soggy or saturated. Moss can be collected from parking lots, sidewalks, or other public areas. An old credit card is perfect for slicing off just the moss and a thin layer of soil beneath it to keep it in clumps, as moss does not send down roots. Moss can also be allowed to dry and then sprinkled over moist soil. After a few months of ideal conditions a thick green carpet will grow.

"Keep the completed landscape moist by misting several times a day. Very diluted amounts of fertilizer from time to time will help keep it healthy. Moss will also appreciate the starchy water used to rinse rice. Even with perfect care the landscape may crisp up and turn brown. Enjoy it while it lasts, nothing lasts forever."

Jade Bonsai

Michelle — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 04:11:00 GMT

Wikipedia is rapidly making bloggers everywhere insecure in their ability to compose original content, as it covers virtually EVERYTHING... I started typing about how jade makes great indoor bonsai and then thought I would just do a quick Google search on the topic to see what else has been written along the same lines, of course, Wikipedia did not let me down:

"Commonly known as jade plant, friendship tree, lucky plant or Money Plant, Crassula ovata is a succulent plant with small pink or white flowers. It is native to South Africa, and is common as a houseplant worldwide.

Jades are evergreen plants with thick branches and smooth, rounded,fleshy leaves that grow in opposing pairs along the branches. Leaves area rich jade green; some varieties may develop a red tinge on the edges of leaves when exposed to high levels of sunlight. New stem growth is the same color and texture as the leaves, but becomes brown and woody with age. Under the right conditions, they may produce small white or pink star-like flowers in early spring.

The jade plant lends itself easily to the bonsai form and is popular as an indoor bonsai."

So that's the basics. I will add that in my experience Jade is virtually indestructible, refuses to die even weeks (or months) after having been tossed in the trash. It will grow in any light conditions, in almost any soil, with almost any watering schedule except perpetually soggy soil. It can be carved, chopped to the ground, propagated from a single leaf, and really prefers a degree of neglect.

Jade bonsai plants make great gifts. I gave the tree below to a friend last week...

I would encourage everyone to make jade bonsai and give them away to friends. Later in the week I received an actual card in the mail (real mail, with paper, and a stamp, and an envelope and everything) with a raised tree insignia on the front and the following Eleanor Roosevelt quote printed:

I have carried that card around in my purse with me ever since.

Many thanks to Elliot Farkas for sharing this photo of his very nice portulacaria jade bonsai and for contributing feedback on this posting.

Synergy

Michelle — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 21:19:49 GMT

Synergy, in general, may be defined as two or more agents working together to produce a result not obtainable by any of the agents independently*. (* Wikipedia)

These days I am carefully observing the interplay of the inescapable inevitability of energy in transition. We stop the world to take an uninterrupted deep breath, only for an instant, and then realize it continued to spin. Every heart beat, every contraction of our diaphragm that fills our lungs with oxygen and expels carbon dioxide, moves energy through our universe, as part of the butterfly effect of interconnectedness, (the butterfly effect is a metaphor that encapsulates the concept of sensitive dependence on initial conditions in chaos theory; namely that small differences in the initial condition of a dynamical system may produce large variations in the long term behavior of the system*).

If you have 14 spare minutes I think you will immensely enjoy watching this TED video by Rachel Sussman about organism that have been alive for over 2000 years. According to Sussman, "...the project is part art, part science, there's an environmental component, and I'm also trying to create a means to step outside of our quotidian experience of time, and to start to consider a deeper time scale." An ancient Japanese cedar living on the remote island of Yaku Shima, Japan was the catalyst for this project and the pictures are quite stunning. In addition to lichen and coral, most of her specimens over 2000 years old are trees... it is a remarkable little journey around the world as she discusses her findings and travels.

This has been a big summer for me. I am finishing up a book about the spiritual significance of bonsai that will be available next year titled, "Bonsai Ten", the research and writing of which has depleted me, yet taught me so much. Ten in Japanese means 'show' or 'exhibition' as in 'Kokufu-Ten', but also means heaven or the infinite as in TEN, CHI, JIN (heaven, earth, man). Here is an explanation by Henry P. Bowie who studied painting in Japan around the turn of the century and wrote 'on the laws of Japanese Painting' - "The landscape contains a lofty mountain, rocks, river, road, trees, bridge, man, animal, et cetera. The first requisite in such a composition is that the picture respond to the law of TEN, CHI, JIN, or heaven, earth, and man. This wonderful law of Buddhism is said to pervade the universe and is of widest application to all the art of man. TEN CHI JIN means that whatever is worthy of contemplation must contain a principal subject, its complimentary adjunct, and auxiliary details. Thus is the work rounded out to perfection."

Writing a book is a lot harder that I thought it would be. One of the toughest parts is quieting the inner critic long enough to just get through each page, finding the courage to say what's in your heart, then letting an editor tell you it's not good enough (thank goodness for editors). I am also realizing how important it is to have a solid support network of people who genuinely wish good things and positive outcomes for me and who believe in the best possible scenarios. My husband is my strongest ally, but heaven knows when he married me he would need the help of strangers to prop me up enough to get through the waves of insecurity that I brought with me down the aisle. Developing confidence in convictions is a slow process and involves some pain to move in that direction... as Elizabeth Gilbert says in Eat.Pray.Love: You can't get to the castle without swimming through the moat (click here to watch her vividly popular TED talk about nurturing creativity).

We all have such a profound effect on each other, whether we intend to or not. You never know when the person sitting next to you will be instrumental in changing your life or will just quietly head off in their own direction. It is a beautiful dance of cause and effect, coincidence and destiny, and the beating of butterfly wings. Art meets science while shaking hands with philosophy, while spinning around and floating away and ultimately everything means nothing despite all of our musing over it. We are in a constant state of transition and in a transition state.

"Because of the rules of quantum mechanics, the transition state cannot be captured or directly observed; the population at that point is zero. This is sometimes expressed by stating that the transition state has a 'fleeting existence'.

The transition state of a chemical reaction is a particular configuration along the reaction coordinate. It is defined as the state corresponding to the highest energy along this reaction coordinate. At this point, assuming a perfectly irreversible reaction, colliding reactant molecules will always go on to form products.

One way in which enzymatic catalysis proceeds is by stabilizing the transition state through electrostatics. By lowering the energy of the transition state, it allows a greater population of the starting material to attain the energy needed to overcome the transition energy and proceed to product."*

We are all trying to overcome the transition energy and proceed to some worthwhile product, to progress,and to grow.

As a follow up and testament to the changes in the season, here is another picture of Dan Barton's wild cherry plum laden with fruit from the Spring Snapshot Party: (many, many thanks for the picture Dan.)

Dan is also busy in his studio these days and producing very large, and very wonderful bonsai pots, many more pictures of which are posted on his website:

Coincidentally he mentions this pot is bound for a large olive in the States, but alas it is not for me. I am working on a large olive I had in a show this past month, that is still a ways from 'finished' but at a showable place in progress all the same.

The photo was taken by a professional photographer visiting the show named Brian Sohn. To reach Brian contact him at this email address brian.sohn@yahoo.com or give him a call at 703-964-719 for photography services in Southern California.

Mr. Saburo Kato (1915-2008)

Michelle — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 03:58:00 GMT

Mr. Kato's bonsai philosophy : "Bonsai is an art form which united the people of the world in peace. I wish to disseminate this spirit of bonsai as my contribution to eternal peace on earth."

If you are not already familiar with his biography please visit this link to phoenixbonsai.com

World Bonsai Friendship Federation (WBFF)

* * * * *

Back to Bonsai...

Michelle — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 03:25:00 GMT

Spring Beauty

Michelle — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 21:57:00 GMT

     The wonderful thing about potluck is it always works itself out to be a complete meal practically without any coordination. Somehow there's always a salad, a vegetable, a dessert, etc. The photos you all generously sent in had the same serendipitous cohesion: something from every course.
Bon appetit!

     Dave Rochester hard at work making bonsai pots. That's me with the hat in the first shot, along with Florentina Cruz on the right, who happened to be helping out at Dave's house the day he assembled his 5 tree 'Taxodium distichum' forest (photo taken by Trish Bonapace). I took the bottom 3 photos last week. The shelves show just some of Dave's handmade pots.
     To see more of Dave's pottery work visit BonsaiArtisans.com.

     Brenda Storey took the above photo at the San Diego Botanical Garden. Below is Phil Tacktill and his Japanese Wisteria in full bloom.

     From Dan Barton: "...a snapshot of my 'Wild Cherry Plum' in blossom at this very moment. Whenever it comes into flower I know that Spring has arrived and we can look forward to extended evenings with smokey barbecues and fruity wines and joined by friends."
     I've been a huge fan of Dan's fabulous and imaginative pots for years and didn't realize until now that he has an awesome website, with pictures of many pots and other things. Plan to spend some time at this site, and be sure to add a bookmark!

     This was sent in by Jim Mueller, "...a photo of a fountain I’m working on to celebrate the beginning of spring here. I wish I were at this place fishing with these two guys." He calls these Hon Non Bo Masterpieces 'ShanChuan Islands™' and this one is titled "Fishing at Jiu Gang Falls." I shared some of his other work in the article Artist Jim Mueller - Part One and I've received several requests to come through with the promised Parts 2 & 3... they're coming, really.

     Below is an assortment of amazing bronze accents made and sent in by David Glaister, who also makes bonsai jewelry.

    One of my favorite trays above, I keep adding and subtracting random little plants. Could I convince anyone it's 'Desert Kusimono' or is the angel candlestick holder a deal breaker?

     These two pictures were taken by Graham Hues - "...a shot of our camelia that is somewhat protected from the rains... and a shot of our grand daugther Ella in her spring outfit." The picture of Baby Ella is my favorite Spring Snapshot.

     Thank you all so much for participating and coming to my first hosted Snapshot Party. I admit I may have gone a little overboard with the clip art (artistic confetti), but it is a party after all, and I can always blame it on having had too much punch. Please enjoy the rest of the magic of this Season, surrounded by nature's beauty.

Michelle

Bonsai as Poetry

Michelle — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:47:51 GMT

I absolutely LOVE the Spring Photos that are coming in. Dave Rochester was the first to 'arrive' and has received 2 handmade pots. I am waiting until the 15th to publish them, once they're all here, so please 'keep em comin.' Snapshots can be emailed as an attachment to: michelle@bunjinjournal.com

Thank you to all three guys who wrote to let me know that the Elk on my cake is actually a Moose.
Um..... I knew that... I just throw these things in sometimes to see if anyone is paying attention - your noticing the details and assisting with accuracy is much appreciated, please continue to edit when necessary.

The work that we do with our trees is poetry, the trees themselves are visual poetic expressions. The practice of ongoing care and maintenance, thoughts that go into development, meditation, contemplation, and labor are all written into our ongoing experience, in volumes of poetry, in our hearts what may never connect to our brains with words.

I sometimes imagine standing on a ledge peering into the vast and bottomless expanse of all the things I do not yet know, supported by the very small mountain, including the ledge, of the thing I have learned so far. So many sources of inspiration are available to us today, in pictures, in conversation, in reflection, and so many other opportunities to discover things that inform our practice of bonsai.

The opinions of others about our work in progress, is not the least bit significant next to the progress being made in ourselves. If we can truly love the tree, it will tell us what to do, which branch to cut, when to fertilize, how it wants to grow, how to make it more beautiful so that we will love it more. Thousands of years of history, philosophy, tradition, and knowledge are at our fingertips and accessible if we have the desire to search. Sometimes the best bonsai books or websites do not contain snazzy pictures, sometimes they do, and sometimes they are, or are not, even about bonsai.

Some of my favorite inspirational quotes are found in Fertilizer Cakes for the Soul (posted Oct 09), but here are a few more by the French philosopher and poet Gaston Bachelard (1984 - 1962):

The characteristic of scientific progress is our knowing that we did not know.

Ideas are refined and multiplied in the commerce of minds. In their splendor, images effect a very simple communion of souls.

Man is an imagining being.

One must always maintain one's connection to the past and yet ceaselessly pull away from it.

Poetry is one of the destinies of speech... One would say that the poetic image, in its newness, opens a future to language.

Reverie is not a mind vacuum. It is rather the gift of an hour which knows the plenitude of the soul.

The great function of poetry is to give back to us the situations of our dreams.

The subconscious is ceaselessly murmuring, and it is by listening to these murmurs that one hears the truth.

The words of the world want to make sentences.

Gaston Bachelard

Spring Snapshot Party

Michelle — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 19:45:18 GMT

You are invited to attend an online Snapshot Party.
Usted está invitado a asistir a mi partido en línea deinstantáneas.
あなたは私のオンラインスナップショットパーティーに招待されます。

Most sites these days seem to be hosting contests, and the best ones have the feel of a friendly cocktail party. I love hosting parties! "Oh, I'm so glad you could make it Artist A, let me introduce you to Artist B, who is working on the most interesting project..." No need to bring a covered dish or a bottle of wine to share with others, just a snapshot you have taken that captures the wonder of spring in some way. A more detailed description is below. To participate just email a snapshot to: michelle@bunjinjournal.com or if you have a cell phone with a camera, just point, click, and send to 310-927-6032.

There will be no official judging or 'rules' but as a good hostess I will give away party favors and door prizes. I'll mail a handmade shohin pot to the first guest to arrive, 2 pots to the person who captures the photo that generates the most comments, etc. Send your snapshot anytime during the next two weeks, before April 15th (that's an easy date to remember). Here's more about the theme:

Last year when I had the opportunity to visit Seiji Morimae's nursery and display garden in Ginza (above left) I saw something I had never seen before. In a small building in his raked garden was a shrine containing a dead tree (above right). It was beautiful and thought provoking and the image of that display haunts me in a positive way. It is not a coincidence that we are celebrating the return from death to life all over the world. Whether it is a picnic in the park under cherry blossoms, or a hunt for plastic eggs on a church lawn, the first few weeks of Spring are wondrous and filled with joy.

All winter I have been staring at a dead looking grape vine, that I collected in November and stuck in some dirt. Ted Matson advised there was no need to collect roots, just branches that looked interesting, the vigor would be in the trunk. After six months of waiting and hoping, this past week my bare branch has sprouted new leaves. That this is possible is more amazing than I can describe.

I am inspired. I want to share my excitement. I hope that you will happen to have a similar moment of euphoria and will send it to me. A snapshot is just a happenstance of a picture-worthy moment coinciding with a camera in your hand. It need not be taken in a studio, with a backdrop, or professional lighting or a fancy camera. Please just try to let it not be blurry. Jpegs are good, but most formats will work. Don't worry about size, I can adjust it to fit. Most photos on this site are under 500 x 500 pixels. Bonsai related images are nice, but I am obviously appreciative of related categories as well. Here are a few more examples:

(This last photo was also taken at Seiji Morimae's nursery. Mr. Morimae is a kind and talented artist. I came across an excellent article where he is quoted in Forbes magazine, "The younger generation is more interested in computers, gadgets and anime than in ministering to tiny trees. Seiji Morimae, one of Japan’s hottest bonsai dealers, is trying to shake things up. He runs a store full of inexpensive and expensive bonsai,tools and accessories. To keep the art in vogue, he is catering to a crossover audience. “Our main customers are not bonsai lovers but art lovers, lately,” he says." To read the complete article click here. )

I look forward to receiving all your pics. Please tell your friends, family, and neighbors to submit a quick shot - for the fun of it.

March Burrito Bonsai Wrap-Up

Michelle — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 04:25:00 GMT

March has been one of the craziest months ever... here's my attempt to catch up:

Repotting, restyling, redoing, repinching, rethinking, reviewing ~ every single tree got re-something-ed.

I was thinking I might redo this juniper to submit along with a few others for consideration to be included in the 2nd National Exhibition in Rochester, NY in June, but once I put them all together I decided to wait another year before submitting anything. I'd really rather have my varsity trees show up at the Super Bowl of bonsai shows instead of JV and I want to be able to compete to win and not just to show. I am really jazzed about going though, and I will have a vendor table there selling some really special pots.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I started teaching very basic bonsai beginner workshops. Every Wednesday in March I showed up with all my gear and teaching tools at the Senior Center, and people actually showed up eager to learn. If I want to further my own education in bonsai, I might as well jump start someone elses. I love teaching! Here are 3 of my 'students':

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I wrote a really neat article entitled "Ikebana Americana" and then I lost it. It started out with something like - "Ever since I was old enough to handle a pair of scissors without adult supervision I was raiding my grandfather's flower gardens... " and then launched into the difference between American style flower arrangements that typically enhance BIG events like weddings and funerals, and are often characterized by their sheer volume of flowers, compared with the Japanese tradition of appreciating flowers as part of everyday, with just one or a few perfect seasonal blooms, carefully arranged in a spiritual ceremony. Anyway you get the idea. I planned to include these two photos of my arrangements in each style:

...Explosion in A Crayon Factory

...Traditional Restraint

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The California Bonsai Society held a reception Saturday evening as part of their Spring show at the Huntington. I was delighted to discover that (in my quick estimation) almost half of the exhibitors were women. Some of my favorite trees were created by Marge Blasingame, Kay Komai, June Nguy, Ann Erb, and Nina Ragle. The Huntington has also opened the addition to their bonsai pavilion, including a shohin display, and I have pictures, but that really will have to wait for its own posting.

Pine created by John Naka, who was the founder of the club.

Tokonoma display by Marge Blasingame.

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Yesterday I went to the Wild Animal Park (Thank you Brenda for the tickets):

Baby elephant born on Valentine's Day.

The lions are my favorite.

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And lastly I want to throw in this picture of a chocolate cake I made for the Tray Landscape Club party. The 'water' is vanilla frosting, the 'trees' are rosemary twigs and eucalyptus branches, the 'snow' is powdered suger, the mountain is cake with chocolate frosting, and the elk coming down to take a drink is unfortunately plastic. The cake part tasted delicious. Thank you VanMoch Nguyen for emailing me the picture.

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Aunt Suzy - your new puppy is adorable! Dave - let's get together to talk pots.
Janet - I'm sorry I can't make it on the 2nd because I'll be in Northern California studying with Jim Gremel.

Good luck to everyone with tax season
Michelle

Why 'Bunjin Journal'?

Michelle — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 21:29:00 GMT

I chose the name Bunjin Journal for this website for several reasons. Not because I think of myself as a great bonsai scholar or wise educated authority, far from that, but because I feel in my heart the deepest appreciation for this style of bonsai. I am constantly researching extensively what makes a good bunjin-gi, and desire all those qualities and characteristics for this online endeavor you are reading now. In an excerpt from the article 'John Naka on Bunjin - Gi - Bunjin Style,' John Naka wrote:

Characteristics of Bunjin Style
It has shape or form but there is no definite pattern
It has no pattern, it is irregular and seems disfigured.
In Japanese way, they are able to just drink and enjoy tea very casually with just Yakuta Kimono on. Not to use silverware and linen napkin in a more sophisticated manner.
It is like food that has no taste at the beginning but the more you chew the more flavor comes out. When you first look at bunjin style there is nothing exciting about it, it is so skimpy and lonely. But the more you observe it the more the tree quality and natural traits will come out. You will feel something from inside of your mind, and not only through the surface eyes...
Read the complete article, reprinted here with permission.

Jonas Dupuich once told me that the most successful websites are focused on a specific topic and diverge from that very little. That may be true. Regular posting schedules may tend to help readers know when to check back in for new content, but given the title of this one, I'd like to think of the length of time between my unstructured postings as elegantly empty space.

Like the literati of China and the artists of 19th century Japan, it is important to keep an open mind and study as many aspects of life and our experience of it as possible. In Japan I was told to study related art forms like Ikebana and Kabuki Theater to better understand the principles of bonsai beneath the surface. Art is not created in a vacuum and developing expanded perceptions is a benefit of side trips and diversions. This site will continue to feature non-bonsai moments that make the bonsai moments that much sweeter.

An amazing Ikebana teacher, Janet Wanerka, giving a demonstration for the group.

My friend, Brenda, created this arrangement for a local show.

The raked garden outside the bonsai pavilion at the Huntington, in the rain during Bonsai-a-thon.

Tak Shimazu (seated) and Harry Hirao at the 2010 Bonsai-a-thon.

Tray Landscape Club 2010 Show at the San Diego Botanical Garden (formerly Quail Botanical).

Fern accent and trees waiting to be loaded into the car...

Shohin Convention Pictures

Michelle — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:08:00 GMT

Here are a few pictures from the Shohin Convention:

One of Kathy Shaner's workshops

Harry Hirao's workshop. (He's collected 75 California Junipers this year.)

The 3 day event was a whirlwind. It was wonderful to see so many friendly faces and to share appreciation of these amazing little masterpieces. Everything anyone could possible need to create shohin was here: knowledgeable teachers, books, tools and supplies, raw stock, finished trees, accents, stands, soil, suiseki, so many vendors selling little pots (you can never have too many little pots), inspiration, and genuine encouragement. I had a blast.

Accent Pot Video

Michelle — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:39:00 GMT

For my cinematic debut I've created a silent Short entitled 'Accent Pot Video'. Watch for it at Sundance, and in the meantime maybe you'll want to pop some popcorn. Okay, so it's only a minute and forty-four seconds. Spielberg, Cameron, Bergman, and Hitchcock had to start somewhere.

I'm demonstrating the simplicity of the most basic way to create pottery, known to man for thousands of years and still just as effective. No wheel, no mold, just a ball of clay and a pair of hands. The shape and length of the fingers to some extent will determine the width and depth of the pot. The natural curve of the hands develop the walls of the vessel. This style is sometimes called a 'pinch pot', but like pinching junipers, it is a certain kind of pinching. A proper pot for growing accent plants or mame, will of course have a hole at the bottom, and may or may not have feet to raise it off the bench. The water always seems to escape somehow with these little pots. So without further adieu, I present this brief little demonstration:

Once the clay has dried thoroughly, I'll brush on a glaze and it bakes in the kiln at somewhere between 2185 - 2381°Fahrenheit (1196 - 1305°Centigrade) depending on the clay and the effect desired. The finished pot is frost proof and hard as a rock (maybe why they call it stoneware), and for a small group of collectors from the San Jose area, comes with a lifetime guarantee against breakage (send me an email to inquire about the special terms of the lifetime guarantee).

Here are a few with various shapes and glazes:

If you'd like to see more videos, I highly recommend the wonderful series by Lindsay Farr of Melbourne, available for free on his website bonsai farm.tv The videos are filmed all over the world and cover a broad range of bonsai topics. It's a wonderful mini vacation and full of inspiration. I will hastily admit his videos have a much higher production value and even include dialogue... that show-off.

BUNJINJOURNAL.COM

Naked Trees - Winter Silhouettes

still with me?

it's been awhile...

Happy January

Best Wishes for 2011

Wishing YouPeace & Happinessin 2011

New Faces of Bonsai...

Exhibition of 25 New Works

Instant Italian Cypress

Saikei Made Easy - 3 Minute Video

Jade Bonsai

Synergy

Mr. Saburo Kato (1915-2008)

Back to Bonsai...

Spring Beauty

Bonsai as Poetry

Spring Snapshot Party

March Burrito Bonsai Wrap-Up

Why 'Bunjin Journal'?

Shohin Convention Pictures

Accent Pot Video

Wishing You
Peace & Happiness
in 2011