The Bonsai Blog of Will Heath

I had the honor of being invited back to the Michigan All State Show in 2007. This time I had the pleasure of instructing a Literati Workshop, a Mame workshop, and participating in another Three-of-a-Kind demo. I also gave a demostration on applying moss to a bonsai in order to improve the overall visual effect of the presentation.

This great show was held at the Fredrick Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids Michigan. Vance Wood and John Stevens, two other Four Seasons Bonsai Club members, also were invited to participate in the Three-of-a-Kind demo. I enjoyed the experience very much and had the opportunity to meet with many of the friends I have made in bonsai.

Below are some pictures from the Three-of-a-Kind demo. For those of you not familiar with this type of demo, all three participants start with the same stock, well as near to the same as can be, and then they all style it according to what they personally see in the tree.

The stock I was given to work with, shown before styling began.

The stock Vance Wood was given to work with, shown before styling began.

The stock John Stevens was given to work with, shown before styling began.

During the Three-of-a-Kind demostration I search for the tree within.

During the Three-of-a-Kind demostration a few pictures were snapped from behind us.

The area we gave the demostration in was very large and was lit by the skylights 30 feet above.

During the Three-of-a-Kind demostration.

The result of my efforts, a semi-cascade style.

Vance Wood’s finished bonsai.

John Steven’s finished bonsai.

My finished bonsai again, that’s Vance Wood in the background looking like he is wondering what the hell I did.

Below are some pictures from the Literati Workshop. This workshop was aimed toward the beginner and was meant to impart an understanding of the style and the history behind it. The participants all received copies of my article A Brief Exploration of the Literati style ( http://www.artofbonsai.org/feature_articles/literati.php ) and other handouts to take home with them. Using young Scots Pine trees, we then explored the many possibilities of Literati design, in which the participants were allowed to form the trees using only their own personal imagination.

Some of the participants.