This Laponica Medullam Cedri is made by Japanese Bonsai artist "Tomio Yamada".
I respect him greatly in the Bonsai world.
He really understands "What is the spirit of Bonsai."
I want to study his philosophy of this tree.
His style is studied from natural aspects, so he can express the bonsai tree's character perfectly.
He also expresses "line and space" and I can feel the life energy from his artwork.
I really want to grow as a bonsai artist so I acquired this tree.
I think this tree is already finished.
Each of the branches are weeping which represents a long year of falling snow reinforcing the natural aspects of his art.
I think Yamada Tomio is the best artist in Japan.
He is an artist because he understands how to find the Bonsai tree's character and spirit.
His senses as a bonsai artist are at the absolute highest level.
I think he has the best sense of Bonsai artistry in Japan.
This is the 39th edition of the Taikan-ten,
I would like the guests to enjoy the Bonsai, a Japanese traditional horticulture,
in Kyoto which is the center of Japanese culture and art.
This is the winning tree, which I have styled.
The Heisei era ended and the Reiwa era started this year.
We are displaying the bonsai that survived the turbulent times from Meiji era to Reiwa.
This tree was owned by former Prime Minister Shigenobu Okuma.
He passed away a long time ago, we have handed it down to next generations since his death.
I am now fifty six years old, and I have been taking care of this since I was twenty four years old.
The estimated age of this tree is about three hundred fifty years old.
This tree was in a poor condition when I saw it for the first time,
so I focused on reviving this tree.
And now this tree is showing us strong vigour.
The black pine "Okuma" has been cultivated for about 300 years in the pot,
but, our lifetime is limited. So when we see a tree living in harsh environment,
we take a tree from the mountain and plant it in a pot to gain inspiration.
The white part is dead and brown part sustaining the tree. So life and death coexist in this tree.
Sometimes this tree gives us energy and encouragement.
The most important thing is to take care of the tree with lots of affection.
Bonsai die if you don't water them. So bonsai is the symbol of peace.
Hello, I am Masahiko Kimura.
Thank you very much for coming to my garden.
This is a tree that I made 35 years ago.
This is the famous juniper "Dance of Rising Dragon".
This one is known to people all over the world.
The one thing I can be proud of this tree is,
that I put this juniper into this pot,
when I made this bonsai 35 years ago.
I have never repotted this one ever since.
But, this juniper is still growing well!
This masterpiece has been highly appreciated from bonsai enthusiasts inside and outside Japan.
In order to find out which was the best species of tree to use for this ishitsuki, I tested several varieties
and I admit I also failed a few times in the process,
but then I came to conclusion that there were no other choices except
using hinoki cypress and juniper itoigawa,
which could live longer on such a slanting stone like this one.
I’m quite confident I’m working with the right material.
This is a hinoki cypress but Juniper Itoigawa grows very well on a rock.
Twenty years and more have passed since I created this ishitsuki
but it’s still alive and it’s still growing very well
Question - As a disciple which was the toughest task you got asked to do?
I didn’t think my jobs were very hard,
but I remember that there were many difficult things to do.
When I was a young disciple, there were some senior disciples as well studying with me.
When I saw them wiring branches for the first time,
I thought that it was quite impossible for me to undertake such a difficult task.
I know that wiring now has become second nature to me,
but at that time I was quite young, so at first it seemed so hard for me.
I clearly remember that I was really struggling with it
and I couldn’t understand how they could do such a difficult job,
I thought I would have never been able to do it myself.
Question - Some of your disciples told us that every time they work on a tree,
they feel like if you were still next to them.
Do you feel the presence of your Oyakata in your work?
My Oyakata…
Well, he rarely directly showed me how to do a bonsai task.
He just gave me some good advice whenever he saw my work.
I learned a lot from his daily guidance because he had an incredible sense of beauty.
I didn’t work together next to my Oyakata, but he always kept an eye on me.
As he was quite strict, I still feel his presence around me.
What an Oyakata teaches to the disciples are the basics of the art,
which for bonsai pros are the most important ones.
Each disciple has to learn the basic knowledge really really well,
otherwise he won’t be able to come up with his own style after the end of his apprenticeship.
This tree is a yamadori,
and the trunk was totally round when this tree arrived to me.
There wasn’t a single shari at first.
Shari is necessary for Juniper bonsai, and I made this shari by myself from scratch.
More than 20 years have passed since I created it.
The surface of shari weathered over many years,
got smooth, and now finally it looks natural.
At this point it doesn’t look like it was artificially carved.
This is one of my more memorable creations.
Do you already have any idea how to develop it in the future?
So far I don’t …
I have been taking care of this bonsai for many many years.
Generally, I always intend to make the best bonsai out of whatever material I start with,
but I may even find something wrong with my work three days or one week later - or even a year later,
but I always try to keep improving it.
I have been restyling this tree over and over again,
so at this point I don’t honestly think by using my skills I could improve this tree any further.