I’ll be taking a break from the blog for the next few weeks, but new posts will return mid-December. In the meantime, here are some photos from the 2011 Taikan-ten exhibit. See you next month! Bunjin black pine Massive shimpaku Formal upright black pine Flaky bark Root over rock chojubai Accent with moss and selaginella […]
Exhibits
Exhibits are where we can see bonsai at their best. Explore posts from Bonsai Exhibits in the U.S. including the U.S. National Bonsai Exhibition and Japanese events including the world-famous Kokufu and Taikan-ten exhibits.
A curious display
I’ll keep this post simple – does anyone know the story behind this display from last month’s Taikan-ten? Display with figures Figures on burl wood Close-up Box of figures
More shitakusa from Taikan-ten
The accent below is common – can someone provide the name? If you look carefully, you’ll notice a shoot from a different plant – the leaf looks like kinzu to me. Ajania pacifica (formerly Chrysanthemum pacificum) – Japanese: iso giku (Thanks to Tom for the tip! -ed.) Here’s another accent of the same variety. It’s less […]
The heart of Japan – Keiji Tanaka display at 35th Taikan-ten
One of the highlights of this year’s Taikan-ten was a special display featuring specimens from the Keiji Tanaka collection. Three bonsai and two suiseki were exhibited in a display designed by Seiji Morimae. The trees were fantastic, as was the work by Shinji Suzuki. Trident maple A placard for the display provided the following text: […]
Korean hornbeam display
This year’s Taikan-ten featured a special display area devoted to an impressive collection of Korean hornbeams. Hornbeams are a favorite variety of mine as they can show great character in the trunk and develop very twiggy branches. Cascade Korean hornbeam – unglazed hexagonal pot It’s rare to see so many old specimens together so it was […]