Kabuki-za, Tokyo

Today I went to see a hitomakumi (single show) at Kabuki-za, the largest Kabuki theater in Japan (image above). The hitomakumi consisted of two short plays. The first one is a dance drama called Tsumeo (top image below) and the second is a drama called Shunkan (bottom image below). Splendid costumes, outstanding performances by actors, narrators, musicians and singers. You don’t have to know Kabuki well to enjoy it. It reminded me of classical Indian dance, ballet, theatric drama and opera at the same time.

Asakusa Kannon Temple, Tokyo

Yesterday, I spent the morning in Happo-en which is a beautiful Japanese garden (picture 1) with two fine tea houses and all other stuff you expect from a Japanese garden. Straw huts, stone lanterns, rock garden, wooden bridges, pond with koi-carp, bonsai, etc. In the afternoon I went to Sensoji (aka Asakusa Kannon Temple) the oldest Buddhist temple in Tokyo (built in 645 AD). The place is very crowded, but you can always find a quite spot (picture 2).

Bonsai old timers

The Ezo Spruce shown on picture1 was originally lifted as yamadori in the Kuril Islands, Russia, brought to Honshu, and trained as bonsai. This specimen is over 500 years old! The same goes for the Sargent’s Juniper (picture 2). It is over 500 years too! It was collected in Hokaido when this species still could be found in the wild. Wild Sargent’s Junipers are almost extinct in Japan. I saw these bonsai in a public garden.

My first Japanese Tea Ceremony

Yesterday. I saw a Japanese Tea Ceremony. It took place in a historic teahouse called Muan (picture 2). It was built in Edo period (about 130 years ago) by a wealthy silk merchant, and later moved to its present location in Happo-en garden. Muan is fashioned in a soan style (grass hut) with ceilings made of Japanese Cedar. I was the only guest and it was an informal Urasenke school tea ceremony. The tea master was skilful and her movements were more complex than what I’ve seen on videos (picture 1). The tea was usu-cha (thin tea) and it was good. They also gave me some sweets made of compressed icing sugar. The first cup was served in a Kiyomizu-yaki bowl (picture 3) and then it was followed by the second cup served in a Karatsu-yaki bowl (picture 4). When the tea master saw that I am interested in ceramics, she brought an Akaraku-yaki bowl to show me (picture 5).

Bonsai in everyday life

In Australia, bonsai is just one of those rare hobbies and people live their lives without ever seeing one. In Japan, bonsai is a part of the cultural heritage and you see it in everyday life. Here are some examples.

1. Bonsai in a temple.

2. Bonsai in a window of a noodle shop.

3. Bonsai in a public garden.

4. Bonsai in front of a house.

A trip to Kamakura

Yesterday I went to Kamakura and visited a some temples and a couple of museums. It was a very cold and windy day, but here are some of the highlights.

1. Engaku-ji – a Zen temple built during Mongolian invasions about 700 years ago.

2. Kencho-ji – the oldest Zen monastery in Japan, founded in 1253 by a Chinese Zen monk. It is ranked as number one Zen temple in Japan.

3. Tsurugaoka Hachimanu – the main Shinto shrine if Kamakura originally built in 1063. The shrine has a small museum with some historical treasures.

4. Kotoku-in – the Great Buddha statue (Daibutsu) built in 1252. Originally housed in a building which was blown away by wind twice.

My whole Kamakura program was delayed because I was asked by some elderly Japanese to have lunch with them in the temple. The rooms inside the traditional wooden building were absolutely gorgeous with exquisite paintings and calligraphy on sliding wall panels. In front of the building was a tea garden and lunch was served in a room used for tea ceremonies. The priest showed me a Hagi-yaki chawan they use for the ceremony and gave me a cha-bana book (flower arrangement for tea ceremony). The food was delicious made by the best bento maker in Yokohama. I was really humbled the kindness of these people. Here is the picture of a flower arrangement in one of the rooms.

Bonsai Village, Omiya

Today I visited Bonsai-cho in Omiya-koen. It is a small town near Tokyo famous for its bonsai nurseries. I visited only five of them. Fuyo-en is an old school nursery with a lot of well-tended larger size trees. Kyuka-en is a bit ran down, but still has some nice trees. Seiko-en is very slick and stylish. They have some really impressive trees and they actually charge an entrance fee. Mansei-en has more space and specializes on larger trees or groups of trees. Some of them are very good. Bonsai master Saburo Kato was the 3rd generation owner of this nursery. Toju-en has some nice trees mostly largish pines. Bonsai master Masahiko Kimura studied at this nursery under Motosuke Hamano from 1955 to 1966. None of the nurseries allow taking photos, so my photo album from Omiya is very slim and unfortunately it’s all in the head.

P. S. For a more comprehensive coverage of bonsai nurseries in Omiya see the following posts:

Tuju-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/toju-en-omiya.html

Mansei-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/mansei-en-saburo-kato-and-forest.html

Seiko-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/seiko-en-omiya.html

Fuyo-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/fuyo-en-omiya.html

Kyuka-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/kyuka-en-omiya.html

Shoto-en - http://lomov.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/shoutou-en-omiya.html

Ueno Green Club, Tokyo

I also went to Ueno Green Club where they hold an annual bonsai market in conjunction with Kokufu Bonsai-ten. Here are some of the highlights in pictures.

1 – A stall specializing in larger trees.

2 – A stall specializing in medium and small trees.

3 – Advanced bonsai stock from plantation (Japanese Maples).

4 – Advanced bonsai stock from plantation (Japanese Black Pines).

5 – Mame bonsai pots by Heian Kouzan ranging in price between $5,500 and $7,000.

They also had suiseki, books, and lots of different tools including some fancy power tools for carving. Antique bonsai pots were impressive, some are large, more than 100 years old with nice patina, but their prices were shocking.

Opening day of the 84th Kokufu Bonsai-ten

Today was the opening day of the 84th Kokufu Bonsai-ten – the biggest and the most prestigious annual bonsai exhibition in Japan. There were 269 exhibits. To me such large number of absolutely magnificent trees was too overwhelming. I felt that each tree should have been admired alone without other masterpieces overshadowing it. The standard of the trees was so high that I haven’t seen anything like that in any of the Australian Bonsai exhibitions. Unfortunately, taking photos in the exhibition was prohibited and I managed to take only a few snaps, when security personnel weren’t looking. I was lucky enough to have a little Kokufu-ten adventure and it began when I heard someone speaking in Russian. Turns out it was the lingua franca used by a Lithuanian and a Czech. The Litvanian was Kestutis Ptakauskas of Morning Dew Garden, Lithuania and the Czech was Vaslav Novak of Bonsai Centrum, Czech Republic. They introduced me to their friend Mr. Sun You Won, the Chairman of Korea Small Bonsai Association. I told them about my Pictorial English-Japanese Dictionary idea and Mr. Sun You Won kindly introduced me to Mr. Hiroshi Takeyama, the Chairman of Nippon Bonsai Association and Mr. Susumu Nakamura, the Director of Nippon Bonsai Association (the big boss). Mr. Nakamura spoke English and told me that his son might be able to help me to find a partner for this project. His son Mr. Makoto Nakamura was somewhat critical about the project idea, but when I explained that it would be a very visual book with lots of drawings he asked me to send more details by e-mail. Now the ball is in my court!

Dust Storm

The top image shows my garden this morning during the dust storm and the bottom image shows it this evening after the storm. The new shade cloth frame I erected a few months ago is prominent in these photos.




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Yesterday's kiln firing

The pot that I fired yesterday has several cracks and a part of its bottom fell off, but it still holds water and quite functional! I think the initial heating of the kiln was too rapid.

First firing of my kiln

In the last couple of months I have been building a small kiln to fire bonsai pots and tea bowls at home. Last weekend the kiln was completed and tonight I fired it for the first time. The temperature in the kiln went up to 1180 degrees Centigrade in one and a half hours, which was higher than I expected. I could have achieved even a higher temperature, but I had no pyrometric cones for higher temperatures. I'll open the kiln tomorrow morning. I hope the pot is not cracked.

"Become a bamboo"

A Chinese artist once described to his disciples the secret of painting: “Draw a bamboo for ten years, become a bamboo, then forget all about bamboos when you are drawing. Once in a possession of an infallible technique, you place yourself at the mercy of inspiration.”

Bonsai, just like any art has two parts to it: the technique and the creative process. The thing about bonsai is that its technique is way more complex than in most other artistic media. It takes years to acquire the horticultural knowledge and experience necessary for it. Nevertheless, there are enough of bonsai enthusiasts who have the technique. There are also enough artists who are capable of creating exquisite bonsai, but they choose to work in other artistic media. Bonsai masters who possess both the technique and the artistic talent are quite rare.

"Willows are green and flowers are red"

A well known Zen saying tells us: “Willows are green and flowers are red.” It takes each aspect of reality for what it is, and nothing more. I think this is how one should evaluate bonsai. If it is good it will be obvious. If it is not obvious, it is not that good. However, all this doesn’t apply to people who can’t resist liking ugly things.

I recently made a couple of bonsai pots that would convey the feeling of wabi (rustic beauty) and I hope I succeeded to some extent.

Ray Nesci's technique

I forgot to mention that at Peter Adams' workshop last week, Ray Nesci showed everyone an amazing technique. He forms a tree trunk out of moss and plants many small plants into it as branches. Plant roots eventually reach the soil at the base of the trunk, while the moss rots away leaving a thick and gnarly trunk formed by the roots. It's awesome!

Bonsai by the Harbour 2009

Last month I attended this year’s ‘Bonsai by the Harbour’ workshop organized by the Bonsai Federation of Australia. The venue was splendid and most presenters demonstrated advanced techniques. My favorite was Rick Roberts who was styling an evergreen variety of trident maple. It was a tree previously grown in the field with a 15 cm-thick trunk base and 2 cm-thick lower branches. He demonstrated methods for bending thick primary branches (Picture 1) and grafting new roots to an existing nebari (Picture 2 & 3).

Peter Adams' workshop, Sydney 2009

Today, I attended Peter Adams's workshop. He is an unusual bonsai artist and an entertaining speaker. He hasn't performed any 'miracles' with the trees during his demonstrations, but his visions of final tree designs embodied in most excellent sketches were very impressive indeed. The picture here shows a Chinese Juniper he styled, and the sketch of what he wants it to be in the future.

Irregularity, poignancy and brevity

I was reading Bernard Leach’s “A Potter in Japan” and found a beautiful passage pertaining to Japanese ceramics for the Tea Ceremony: “They [utensils for the Tea Ceremony] … are made in a land of earthquakes where nothing can be built for permanence and the Tea Rooms are like charming human birds’ nests in rock gardens where nature, irregularity, poignancy and brevity hold sway.” It is said so well that I just couldn't resist quoting it here.

The Exhibition of Bonsai Study Group

I visited the annual exhibition of Bonsai Study Group today. It is the only Bonsai Club that does their show in autumn. The atmosphere of the exhibition was very nice, a few pleasing trees on display (one of such bonsai is shown in the picture). The demonstration on penjing planting is was interesting too. However, my yearning to see at least one outstanding bonsai wasn’t satisfied. Better luck next time!

Genji Monogatari on autumn foliage

Day by day, autumn is making itself more and more apparent in my little garden. Cold nights almost completely stopped the growth of my bonsai. Recently, while reading Genji Monogatari I stumbled across an interesting remark made by one of the novel’s characters. It goes: “… Nothing is so beautiful as the brilliant dyes spread over the face of Nature, yet the red tints of autumn are often not dyed to a colour so deep as we desire, because of the early drying of the dew, so we say - such is the uncertain fate of this world.” I wonder whether dew really affects the colour of autumn foliage.

Confucianism and Bonsai

I recently read a book by R. L. Taylor titled Confucianism to learn about this philosophy/religion in general and to find out the extent of Confucian influence on art in particular. As far as art is concerned, Confucians mostly focused on literature, music and calligraphy. However, I came across a passage written by one of the great Confucian teachers of Japan, Kaibara Ekken (1630 - 1714). He wrote: "..., no living creatures such as birds, beasts, insects and fish should be killed wantonly. Not even grass and trees should be cut down out of season. All these are objects of nature's love, having been brought forth by her and nurtured by her." Confucian ideology is deeply rooted in the mentality of East-Asian people and this passage explains why Chinese and Japanese penching/bonsai growers are so particular about pruning, repotting and defoliating their plants only at certain times of the year. Simply not to kill or hurt them wantonly. Another interesting reference to plants in the book is that juniper and Ginkgo trees have long been associated with Confucianism. Typically, the path connecting the main gate of a Confucian Temple to the Hall of Great Accomplishments, which contains the main altar, would boast juniper and Ginkgo trees along with statues of famous Confucians. It is not surprising that these species are so popular in bonsai culture, despite Ginkgo being not really ideal for bonsai cultivation. The picture shows a juniper and Ginkgo from my garden.

Reinventing the wheel

I wasn’t happy with the very light colour of fired raku clay I used for making my bonsai pots and I decided to mix it with an iron oxide to make it darker. An oval pot for one of my junipers made of this clay is shown on the first picture. I had a small leftover of this clay and thought what if I smudge it on the surface of another pot to make it look dark while it is made of the usual light clay. Little I knew that it’s a basic pottery technique and the clay I smudged is called slip. However, it is usually diluted to consistency of a glaze and painted on with a brush. The pot that resulted from my first use of slip is shown on the second picture and it will house a small Black Pine.

27th Annual Show of the School of Bonsai

Three days ago I went to the 27th annual show of the School of Bonsai, Sydney. I understand its primary aim is to showcase the work if the school’s students, but their work is quite uninspiring. Last year’s show was similar, but Ray Nesci’s private collection was opened for public viewing and it has a number of really beautiful trees. This year, a small suiseki display put up by George Reisiss was more impressive than the bonsai trees. The group of trees shown on the picture popped up at this show and at the show of Bonsai Society of Australia this year. It is composed well, but some of its tree trunks have ugly scars which diminish its aesthetic value. Bonsai of this standard is pretty much as good as it gets at Sydney exhibitions this year.

Dillwynia sieberi drawing

This is my drawing of a shrub I studied for two years. Its name is Dillwynia sieberi. The drawing shows an inflorescence. The flowers are pollinated by bees. Marked "a" on the drawing is the chamber formed by two ‘keel’ petals housing pistil and stamens. Marked "b" is the location of nectaries and marked "c" is one of the ‘wing’ petals. When a bee lands on the flower in search of nectar it pushes the 'wing' petals which open up the chamber to expose pistil and stamens for pollination.

I am growing a Dillwynia plant in a shallow pot in my garden, but I don't think this species makes good bonsai material.

Bonsai Society of Australia Show: 物の哀れありません

I went to the Annual Spring Show of the Bonsai Society of Australia. There were some decent trees on display (like the Japanese Black Pine on the picture). However, I didn’t see anything exquisite or superb. There was not one tree that evoked “物の哀れ” (mono no aware). My wife encouraged me to buy an Azalea with purple flowers, labeled ‘Redwings’. It was inexpensive and therefore will need a lot of work.

Resurrection of Pink Serissa

At the end of last year, I got a lovely little Pink Serissa (Serissa foetida). I was just beginning to consider how to train it as bonsai (left picture), when my dog Bella ate it to the ground. The stump of the main stem soon rotted away and I lost all hope for the plant's survival, when suddenly a leaf bud sprouted from something that looked like a surface root. Look at this plant now (right picture)!

趣味は盆栽です

私は日本芸術品と日本歴史と日本文化好きです。今年は日本語の勉強を始めます。趣味は盆栽ですけど近縁の芸術品好きです。この芸術品は焼き物と日本庭園と水石と日本建築と書道と墨絵と浮世絵です。

08.08.08

It is 08.08.08 and I decided to make an entry just for the hack of it. It is ironic that today I am working on my pollination paper (addressing reviewer's comments). It is the same paper that has been mentioned in this blog more than three years ago on 15.05.05. Nothing has changed and this is how pathetic I am. On the picture is the mamei pot I made. It is for the smallest kind of bonsai.

My first matcha-chawan

While dealing with unsatisfactory bonsai pots I tried to make a tea bowl or chawan. After six weeks and three firings it came out fine. I am even thinking of flogging it on Ebay. It is a traditional tea bowl style used for serving thick tea or koicha during the Japanese tea ceremony. I have shown it to a couple of Japanese and they liked it. It also sparkled my interest in other clay utensils for the Japanese tea ceremony, especially ceramic tea caddies or chaire. I also started drinking matcha or Japanese powdered green tea. I like it and don't ask me why.

Bonsai shelf extended

After puting up the shelf I realised that I will run out of shelf space this spring. Today, I added a lower shelf and it should keep me out of trouble for a while. I am thinking of going to Japan to see the Kokufuten bonsai exhibition in Tokyo and the bonsai village in Omiya. I hope this plan works. Finding cheap flight tickets could be a start.