Daisaku Nomoto – bonsai work
Daisaku Nomoto has been busy during his brief summer visit to the Bay Area. Here are some of the trees he’s been working on, beginning with an old prostrata juniper.
Prostrata juniper – before
Prostrata juniper – after
Although I’m familiar with his work, Nomoto continues to surprise me. One of the greatest talents bonsai artists develop is their ability to see what a tree can become. Keeping trees healthy is rarely straightforward, and bonsai techniques can range from non-intuitive to incomprehensible. It’s the artistic vision, however, that I most appreciate.
Shimpaku – before
Shimpaku – after
The work always begins with an evaluation, and often an adjustment, of the front of the tree. From there cutback, wiring and styling follow. One would think that getting the tree in the pot at a satisfactory angle is easy until one notices how much Nomoto’s adjustments improve the line of the trunk and the balance of the tree.
Sometimes the trees get entirely new fronts. The photo of the juniper below is shown from the tree’s original front. To make better use of the shari along the trunk, Nomoto suggested using the other side as the front.
The tree’s orignal front after styling – now the back of the tree
Nomoto describing the benefits of the new front
Turning the tree around and tilting it forward made a striking improvement – I’m hoping to see it displayed at an upcoming exhibit. Here it is from the new front.
Shimpaku – new front after styling
The Sierra juniper below is quickly developing into a great tree. As Nomoto noted at last week’s Bay Island Bonsai meeting, planting the pot an inch or two deeper in the pot will reduce the reverse taper and make the tree appear more powerful.
Sierra juniper – before
Sierra juniper – after
Before letting me take any of these photos, Nomoto was adamant about getting the angle right. After snapping a shot of the shimpaku below, I showed the photo to Nomoto. Wasn’t good enough. Several adjustments and several photos later and he was finally happy.
Finding the front
Shimpaku juniper – after styling
Nomoto suggested shortening the jin on the right side of the tree. We’ll see if the tree’s owner agrees. You can see a shot of the tree before the styling at the end of last week’s post, Daisaku Nomoto bonsai critique. This post, as it happens, was featured last week by WordPress.com – the service I use to host Bonsai Tonight. It sent approximately 4,000 new visitors to the site, giving Nomoto a bit more exposure than he’s used to. He replied to this news with a grin: “Maybe 4,000 new customer?”
The future behind us
Post-Dated: The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk, by Michael Hagedorn. Crataegus Books, 216 pp., $14.95. Available from Crataegus Books and Amazon.
Before Michael Hagedorn completed his apprenticeship – before, even, he left for Japan, I was excited for his return. Hagedorn came to bonsai as a talented artist. I believed, upon hearing that he would apprentice with Shinji Suzuki in Obuse, Japan, that several years of formal bonsai study would provide him with the experience, ability, and perspective to do great things in bonsai upon his return. And I knew we’d hear great stories.
A wonderful selection of these stories form the core around which Post-Dated: The Schooling of an Irreverent Bonsai Monk, is formed. Post-Dated shares the raw experience of apprentice life in Japan through the filter of a one trying to make sense of his experience after the fact. And what an experience. Hagedorn apprenticed for almost three years with Suzuki – an impressive accomplishment considering the constant vigilance required to avoid trouble:
Being an apprentice is not unlike being a herd animal on the Serengeti – like a wildebeest – and you must do what the others are doing for self-preservation. If your wildebeest herd is running, you run. If they swerve right, you don’t go left. If you wander off on your own, you are likely to get eaten by the lions. (104)
This applied, even, to the air Hagedorn breathed. Watching him wrangle a monster tree from its pot, Suzuki admonished, “Don’t pant while you work; you can’t do that at clients’ houses” (28). Fortunately for Hagedorn, not all of Suzuki’s instructions lacked humor. Later that same evening, Suzuki sent Hagedorn and fellow apprentice Tachi into the night with the commandment: “Don’t eat just meat! Eat vegetables too” – words that triggered paroxysms of laughter in the apprentices (29).
The first time through Post-Dated I read quickly, eager to finish each anecdote, to absorb each insight. I especially enjoyed Part I as it’s filled with stories that paint Hagedorn’s struggle and success, his consternation and his joy.
The second time through it was Part II that stood out. I found myself thinking, between chapters, about Hagedorn’s images, experiences and ideas – ideas that continue to churn in the back of my mind. These are some of the best words yet written on bonsai.
A close reading reveals a lot about the practice of bonsai. Not the how-to information that helps one avoid crossing wires, but the more important lessons that inform good technique. Specifically, I learned more about what it means to truly care for bonsai. At one point Hagedorn chides himself for making, “the worst mistake of all, lack of affection” (66). He continues:
Arranging the shoots on the spruce should have resembled the feathering of hair by a barber, so that each tip gets its own bit of light. If shoots are of grossly uneven length, and are cutting off the light to the buds beneath, the physiological energy of the tree will decline. The future of the tree will be one where shoots die from lack of sun. To Mr. Suzuki, understanding this problem – and knowing how to prevent it and taking the time to do so – amounts to affection. (66)
Part II reveals Hagedorn’s great attention to his subject. Describing our relationship to bonsai he notes:
We keep orchids because this is how we wish the world to be; we keep bonsai because they are like our grandparents, grounded and prophetic: the future behind us. (204)
The same can be said of Post-Dated – an encapsulation of past bonsai experience that drives us to pursue bonsai with quality and affection.
The book itself if beautiful. Co-designed by Hagedorn, Jennifer Omner (cover and interior) and Kurt Simonson (cover), Post-Dated received a PubWest Design Award earlier this year. The smart layout makes the book a pleasure to read and Hagedorn’s crisp black and white photos punctuate the text and set the mood.
Reading Post-Dated makes me want to study bonsai in Japan despite the obvious challenges. If you get the chance – and are up for the challenge – I hope you will jump at the opportunity. If you are able to visit, do so – the trees are breathtaking. And if any of the above strikes a chord, read Post-Dated – you’ll be glad you did.
Related reviews:
- http://sashi-no-eda.blogspot.com/2009/09/post-dated-by-michael-hagedorn.html
- http://bonsaibark.com/2009/02/18/post-dated-by-michael-hagedorn/
Project trees
One thing I noticed while visiting bonsai gardens in Japan – their “project trees” are pretty good. I found these junipers in Shinji Suzuki’s garden.
Shimpaku
This shimpaku is young and has only one branch – but what fun design potential! Fortunately these smaller junipers are easy to grow from cutting. And although they don’t all come out like this, limited trial and error can produce some pretty good starts.
The first name that comes to mind when I think of young shimpaku is Jim Gremel. Jim has been growing shimpaku for a long time and produces some of the best that I know about.
Tosho – needle juniper
This tosho is another story altogether. After a recent haircut the tree now has two main branches, but I’ll repeat – what great potential! In just a few years this will become a great tree. I don’t know if I’d be brave enough to cut so boldly, but I’d truly love the opportunity to work on material like this. Despite, perhaps, the legendary cuts that accompany tosho work.
Are there any outstanding tosho in the US? It would be fun to see them if there are.
Three more from Urushibata
A juniper, a pine, and another pine from Urushibata’s garden:
Shimpaku
What stood out on this shimpaku was the extensive carving. I don’t know if it is still in process or if this is it. It will be interesting to see the tree in a couple of years when the foliage and deadwood are further refined.
Japanese Black pine
This is a pretty, and old, tree. I appreciate the contrast the deadwood provides – it’s a feature not often seen in black pine bonsai.
Japanese black pine
This giant pine is in the process of a somewhat significant redesign. The nebari was larger than my waist. It’s trees like this that make me wish we had more good large-sized black pines in the US.
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