Have you checked out Willowbog Bonsai’s new Website and Blog? Great fresh new look. Time to change your bookmarks?
Click Image for new Website
Click image for new blog.
Tag Archives: Willowbog Bonsai
School’s Out for Summer
Well that’s the club’s Bonsai School over until after the Summer. I had a great weekend in the sun with a bunch of bonsai folk who also seem to have had a good time. Here’s a few snaps from the weekend.
Before set up
goodies arrive
Underway
Zombie
All together now
Michael’s wallet, a rare sighting 🙂
Sunday workshop
The workers
Happy campers
BSA Exhibition 2014 – A walk around Willowbog Bonsai
With all that was going on at the exhibition, is was easy to forget that just out the door was a bonsai nursery! We were blessed with some sunshine for part of each day and many folk took the chance to have a walk around and see the sale trees and Mr Greedy’s Collection. Here’s a few for you to see.
pot house
The big yew from the Ryan Neil demo
BSA Exhibition 2014 – Valentin Brose
I was lucky enough to be staying at Willowbog over the weekend, so while others were back and forward from hotels etc I had the pleasure of spending time with the Jean and Peter Snart, Peter Warren, and John Armitage, all of whom I had met before. The new addition this time was Valentin Brose, the German Bonsai Artist, and former student of Kunio Kobayashi.
I was about to compare Peter Warren and Valentin, but that wouldn’t be fair on Valentin 🙂 We all know that Mr Warren is a one off! What I will say is that Shunka-en must instill a humbleness in it’s students, a great quality for a bonsai artist. His down to earth, one of the guys approach to the weekend was well received by everyone I spoke too. He is a talented artist and despite there being about 20 different regional accents at the exhibition, he coped very well. He still didn’t understand Phil though 😛
He demonstrated both days and led a display critique on the Saturday afternoon. We will not mention his ‘master plan’ for shohin domination of Europe that was hatched after a few beers on Saturday night 😀
Here are a few photo of his weekend. Valentin, it was a pleasure to meet you.
Ready to open
Saturday demo Sabina Juniper
Result
Display critique
and relax
At the end od a long night
Valentin and his henchman 🙂
Sunday demo tree
making a start
working the deadwood
there’s that henchman again 😉
Finishing touches
Where he wants the apex in the future
but this way for now.
Sadly John was away by this stage
making fun of the host 🙂
And just for you Valentin, this was what we discussed over breakfast on Sunday morning 🙂
BSA Exhibition 2014 Part 4 -The Event
The Event sound like a rather grand title but it was an event in every meaning of the word. Over the Weekend I tried to capture in photos the story of the show from set up to take down. Admittedly it’s my own personal view but I think it captures the social occasion that it was. This is what I got.
Looking Forward to the Weekend
I’m looking forward to the weekend spent at Willowbog Bonsai at the BSA’s 7th Exhibition. I have my camera batteries charging 🙂
I thought I’d share these video done at the last exhibition in 2012 to show what’s in store. I’m reliably told that the standard will be up again this year 🙂
The Weekend in Photos
Well, another busy workshop weekend done and dusted.
Peter braved the Irish sea yet again to bring his own special brand of bonsai education to our shores. I personally found both days very enjoyable. A massive thank you to my long suffering bonsai wife Allison who puts up with this malarkey 3 times a year. Not easy having bonsai folk two days solid at our home, they are a likable bunch, mostly 😉 but I always look forward to Monday night and putting my feet up.
A big thank you to Peter Snart who has now completed year 3 of the school with us. I’m pretty sure that most members of the club don’t quite realise the effort that’s involved in making the weekend work. Thank you Peter.
Here are some of snaps of out twos days.
Bonsai School
Just getting set up for the Willowbog Bonsai School this weekend 🙂
Some New Videos
Snart on Tour Stop 8
After a quick meal back at home, we both headed over to Josh’s Garden for the last stop on our Tour. I have a funny feeling that this was Peter’s favourite stop.
Josh has quite simply some of the best field grown bonsai in the UK. See for yourself.
Massive Beech Collected from a local park 20 years ago
Field Maple from same park
Ulmus Glabra
Turkey Oak
Pine Torture 🙂
Closer look
Oak Bark detail
Copper Beech
Beech Nebari
First year in a pot.
Raulli
Bonsai Eejit 