Bonsai Post: Were are we heading in Bonsai

Having just returned from the GSBF convention in Burbank it started me thinking about were are we going with bonsai here in the United States and also around the world. I've attended the GSBF convention for the last 20 years or so and it seems like every year it is the same people doing most of the work and carrying the load for all of us. When I look at our local club I see the same thing: There are a handful of dedicated folks that make everything click and so many that enjoy the fruits of the labor of so few. At this time in the U.S. we are so very fortunate that there is a cadre of hard-working bonsai enthusiasts and bonsai professionals who continue to provide all of us with direction and the chance to improve our understanding and vision of bonsai. I know here on the West Coast we are lucky to have such a depth of knowledge with people such as Kenji Miyata, Kathy Shaner, Ryan Neil, Michael Hagedorn, and so very many others. On the East Coast you have such talented artists as Bill Valavanis, Suthin Sukosolvisit, Bjorn Bjorvala and the list goes on and on. As an aside, any of you who haven't purchased Bill Valavanis's album Classical Bonsai Art had better get it quick as it is awe-inspiring to look at what he has achieved over the 50 years that he has been studying and teaching the art of bonsai. Do we consider ourselves as bonsai artists-in-training or is this hobby just something to do when were not watching TV? I remember reading an editorial by John Palmer, the editor of Bonsai Today, with the same thoughts 25 years ago. Do we support the local bonsai nurseries and vendors with our dollars? I remember at the last Shohin convention in Santa Nella one of the participants was complaining about the prices that some of the vendors had on some of their plants. In looking at the pre-bonsai that she was complaining about, I could see that this particular vendor had spent probably 12 to 15 years growing this type of material, keeping it healthy, repotting it every few years, trimming it to keep the foliage tight, and he had the audaciousness to ask 300 dollars for it! So I promptly told this young lady that she was correct that there was no way that she should purchase that plant, if she couldn't see the value of 15 years of labor then the material would be wasted on her. I promptly purchased the tree in question and feel that I received a real bargain. How many of us look for nothing but the bargain and overlook the best? If we are to continue to grow personally in bonsai we need to improve our understanding of what will be a good bonsai and what will not. How many of us have that very first bonsai that we started with? I know that my first attempts have been donated to club raffles as I have tried to improve my own collection. If we keep every tree that we have ever owned we wouldn't be able to expand our collection and acquire better and better material. So this is enough ranting I just want to implore all of you to support your local club by volunteering to help in any way that you can. Take a class, improve your skills, visit your local bonsai nursery and purchase something that you can turn into something wonderful.

Some photos of the GSBF convention. A wonderful time was had by all.