Some trees point left, others point right. White pine that points to the left(This and subsequent photos are from the 2020 Kokufu exhibition) Korean hornbeam that slants to the right There are a number of ways to indicate direction or flow in bonsai. In the above examples, the line of the trunk (from the base […]
Kokufu
A simple test to evaluate the integration of foliage and deadwood
A trick for evaluating the design of bonsai with prominent deadwood features.
Kokufu 101: shohin
Today I’d like to share a single tip for styling shohin bonsai – focus on branch density. As you look at photos of shohin displayed at this year’s Kokufu exhibit, you’ll notice that all of the trees are full. There’s a good reason for this. Because the trees are displayed in groups, it makes sense […]
Kokufu 101: conifers
You can often tell the species of a tree by its shape. The tree below could be one of three different species – needle juniper, cryptomeria, or hinoki cypress. Looking closer at the foliage,we can see this is a hinoki, a species that’s commonly styled as formal upright bonsai with highly refined branch pads. Formal […]
Kokufu 101: deciduous bonsai
When designing deciduous bonsai, one of the biggest decisions is how to form the branches. Some of the key considerations are the angle at which the branches emerge from the trunk (do they go up, down, or out), the basic movement (curvy or straight), and the silhouette or outline (pointy or round) of the tree. […]