Club News - July 2018
Meeting - July 20 @ 7PM
Bonsai Master Kathy Shaner - Bunjin Demonstration
Do you have a bunjin you are trying to fine tune? Bring it to our July meeting. Get ready for a fun and informative evening with Kathy Shaner. She is returning to Kusamura to conduct a demonstration as well as offer advice on our bunjin trees. This will be a great opportunity to bring your bunjin styling up at least a notch.
Kathy has been involved in bonsai for over thirty years. She trained in Japan under the apprenticeship of Bonsai Master Yasuo Mitsuya and became the first woman and non-Japanese citizen to certify, by the Nippon Bonsai Association as a professional bonsai artist and instructor.
Do not forget to bring bunjin examples for our show and tell. You will get input from Kathy on these as she incorporates them into her demo. The bunjin demo tree Kathy works on will be included in the benefit drawing. You will not want to miss out on the opportunity to see Kathy in action as well as possibly taking home the demo tree.
Introduction to Bujin Style
A bonsai style commonly called bunjin style in America or simply bunjin. However, one should know the meaning and understanding of bunjin. Bunjin means literary man, man of letters or literati. Opposite of bunjin is “bujin” which means soldier or military man, or in the old days in Japan it would mean a Samurai or Bushi. Opposite characters are bunmin which means common civilian, and soujin which means priest. If not formulae in Japan, they almost sound alike. Amazingly, all of these – bunjin, bujin, bunmin and soujin are related terms to bonsai. However, bunjin describes the most outstanding, elegant, refined, simple and artistic, a personal concept among author, poet, poetess, artist and calligrapher. So, named after this bunjin, for bonsai it is called bunjin-bonsai or bunjin-gi(bunjin-ki), gi or ki means tree.
At the end of Tokugawa shogun period (1868) and beginning of Meiji era (1869) bunjin style was started by well known Japanese bunjin artists such as Sanyo, Chikuden, Taigi and Chokunya, who admired and seriously studied Nansoga (Nanga) also known as Souther Song (Sung) Painting or Southern Chinese Folk Painting. Eventually it influenced horticulturists who started to design trees in Nansoga (Nanga) painting style. This was the origin of the Bunjin style. Japanese bonsai art was also improved to the present Japanese bonsai culture from original Bonkei–Hakoniwa, a type of bonsai which was brought into Japan by Buddhist priest thousands of years ago. The bunjin style suggested led the way to contemporary Japanese bonsai as the natural beauty of bonsai (Shizerbi Bonsai.) They not only admired plants in natural form but they also conformed this to become a living art.
Initially Nansoga or Nanga (1127-1279) was studied from Kaishien-Gaden (or Keshi-Gaden) famous painting art book. Most bonsai compositions (shape or style) and words have been based on this art book, such as Chokkan, Kengai, Zogi, Sokan, Sankan and etc.
Monthly Tasks
Each month there are a number of tasks you need to do to your bonsai – from repotting, to fertilizing to spraying for pests. We have put together a checklist, customized for the San Francisco Bay Area to help you. This checklist is adapted from earlier work by Mitsuo Umehara.
This month: July Tasks
Time to Decandle Black Pines
If you haven't yet cut back this year's candles on your black pines you should do it soon. Once the tips of the needles "harden" and become sharp you've missed your chance for this year. For more details see Black Pine Basics for details.
Introduction To Bonsai Class on July 28
Bonsai is a highly rewarding hobby, but it can seem impossibly complex to someone just starting out. In this introductory class we will "demystify" the process of creating a bonsai. Topics covered include what distinguishes a bonsai from other potted plants, introduction to common bonsai styles, evaluating & selecting material to work on, tools and materials used in bonsai as well as a discussion of the techniques used to style and maintain the tree. This is an interactive class and a great way to jump-start your involvement in the ancient art of bonsai. The class will run from 9:00 am - 12 Noon at the home of Richard and Barbara Phillips. It’s free and open to members and non-members. For more info or to sign up please contact Richard Phillips.
Kusamura at Sei Boku “Style Off”
Jerry Carpenter, Jiecheng Zhang (JC) and David Muir represented Kusamura at Sei Boku’s June club meeting. Teams from Midori, Kusamura and Sei Boku all worked on Trident Maples. It was a fun event.
August Garden Tour – Saturday Afternoon, August 11
In August of each year the club takes a break and hosts a Bonsai Garden Tour instead of a regular meeting. The main attraction is a chance to see the collections of other members. At the last location we have a club potluck. This year you have the opportunity to visit the three collections of trees.
Details are provided in our July newsletter (but not on this website).
Recap of Our June 15th Meeting
Gordon Deeg did a great job showing us how to create a saikei using a fabulous Jim Barrett pot donated to the club by Sandy Vrooman and plant and rock material from the Plantings. The hardest and most important decision is the selection of your number one tree. You should be able to look into the grove and see the trunks of all the trees but never line the trees up in a row. Always use different size trees and pay attention to the direction of both the trees and the rocks.
Gordon wired the pot with both rectangular wires and diagonal wires to hold the trees and the rocks in place. These wires will also act as auxiliary tie down wires. The wires should be tight to do their job. Copper wire is used because it won’t break down as quickly as aluminum over time.
Gordon built a stream in the landscape and along with sand used baby tears, moss and an azalea to finish it off. Photos provided on our website.
