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Masahiko Kimura
At your own risk
Italian, Alessandro Bonardo, now 24, has been an apprentice under Mr Kimura for 6 years and in May 2022, it was formally announced that he had graduated. Within the garden he is affectionately known as Aless. Mr Kimura prepared a tree, an unusually shaped Miyajima white pine for this demo,
Can Kimura dance with a shari?
Masahiko Kimura rearranges the foliage around a dancing shari Exploring the artistic sensitivity of Mr Kimura, we take a look at the material he will work on. The transformation is not tremendously dramatic, however the work is of the highest quality in order to accentuate the best characteristics of the…...
Can it grow upside down?
To get the best results Masahiko Kimura flips a juniper upside down Just turn it upside down, a brilliant idea, which for many would be an impossible option; not so for Masahiko Kimura Another upside down tree, but this is quite different. When we were in the garden of Mr…...
A masterpiece tree has no front
A juniper masterpiece more dead than alive, is totally restored ‘Garyuu’, the history and Kakuryu-an. The oldest photographic record of this tree is from 1962 when it was featured in the auction catalogue for the ‘Gyoshinya Bonsai Commemorative Book’. It was the usual auction catalogue in that photographs of both…...
The final test
Andrei Bessonov’s final work as an apprentice to Master Kimura After six years of apprenticeship under Mr Kimura, this is the ‘final test’ for Andrei, with a tree that was obtained specifically for this purpose. Multiple trunks on this aged old white pine give it a very scenic feel. The…...
Is it a gamble?
Masahiko Kimura is challenged by a huge yew. In a corner of Masahiko Kimura’s bonsai nursery is a yew planted in the ground. The trunk is slender and of a feminine appearance. The top section has great potential as bonsai, both from a deadwood perspective and branch placements. If air…...
Fan of naked trees
The bonsai passion of Sergio Cuan A huge fan of deciduous trees, Sergio Cuan, at first thought that bonsai might be just too difficult to grow. Sergio Cuan Born in: Havana, Cuba Married to: Laura Cuan Children: Isabella and Madeleine Education: Bachelor in Fine Arts, the Pratt Institute, New York…...
True to your Style
A garden filled with forests inspired by Saburo Kato Julio Carretero Álvarez and his wife, Yolanda Peña, fell in love with bonsai in an instant, but decided to approach it in a different way. The result is a garden full of almost man-sized forests. In 2010 I was really overwhelmed…...
It changed my life
Andrei Bessonov followed his dreams by learning bonsai from Kimura As a small town boy Andrei was already much into plants, but a bonsai calendar lead him to becoming an apprentice of the world famous bonsai Master, Masahiko Kimura. What was your training? Just bonsai art. I had just finished…...
Another world
Hervé Dora, the ‘Best New Style’ winner at Bonsai San Saulieu (FR) 2019 had an education in art and philosophy, which explains his different approach to bonsai. What was your training? I have Beaux-Arts training and a General Academic Studies Degree in philosophy. At 40 years of age I became…...
Little Kokufu
A ‘small’ show with large impact The II UBE Bonsai Exhibition was held at the famous venue of the Royal Site of Aranjuez, near Madrid, on 24 to 26 January last and it was officially opened by his Excellency the Ambassador of Japan together with the city’s Mayor This edition
Let’s wire!
We all know that wiring is essential, so you had better learn to love it if you want great results. Let’s make wiring enjoyable! We will look at wiring with aluminium wire for the benefit of both advanced enthusiasts and beginners. Like any technique, it becomes easier with practice and…...
As one with the tree
Hiroaki Suzuki becomes as one with the tree during the styling of a pine Young artist Hiroaki Suzuki takes on the challenge of transforming and displaying a five needle pine. The aim is to change the front to enhance the natural, and rustic beauty of a white pine. It has…...
Hungry to learn
Salvatore Liporace reworks one of his finest bonsai. The first styling of this Juniperus chinensis ‘Sargenti’ has a long history which goes back 20 years when its top was 40 cm higher. Gradually it was pulled down with guy wires to create a more compact tree. The amazing spiralling trunk…...
On the edge
Creative genius, Ryan Neil, turns bonsai upside down You can give Ryan Neil almost any kind of material to work on and he will create something special from it. Here Ryan is confronted by an extremely chunky yew that appears to have only faults. Ryan’s creative eye soon sees possibilities…...
Part-time ‘deshi’
Paolo Nastasi travelled to the land of the rising sun to deepen his knowledge Years ago there was no tradition of going to Japan to improve one’s knowledge. However, times have changed… Taisho-en, run by Masters Nobuichi Urushibata and his son Taiga, was one of the first to give foreign
Should I be born again….
It is hot midsummer in Japan, and beneath the cooling air of the air conditioner, we meet with Masahiko Kimura to talk about his feeling for bonsai. Kimura lives twenty minutes by car from the Omiya Bonsai Village, where Saburo Kato, the chairman of the Nippon Bonsai Association and Hiroshi…...