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individuals. Beyond that, Fujikawa-san looks for material that he personally finds interesting, but that could still provide a positive margin once sold. On occasion, he will actually purchase a tree for himself to keep and develop at the nursery—it all depends on the quality and variety at any given auction. In most cases, though, Fujikawa-san looks for material that is healthy, though slightly unkempt, as these trees tend to be overlooked by other bidders who aren’t willing or able to put in the work to get them back to peak condition.
If the same trees show up in auctions again and again, do they reflect a continual refinement? Sometimes, we do see the same material resurface time and again at auctions. Often, these trees either have defects and are difficult to sell, or the bids don’t go high enough to satisfy the seller.
Mention was made of specimens grown from pencil- thin stock at the nursery. Others are acquired at auc- tions and some come from growers. Are bonsai still collected from the wild in Japan? Are any imported? This can be a touchy subject in Japan, particularly re- garding imported material. Collecting in most areas in Japan is now illegal—with the exception of privately owned land—so it’s rather rare to see new native ya- madori material flowing into the market, especially Shimpaku Junipers. The demand is still there, though, for high quality yamadori, especially for Juniperus species. Many nurseries have begun legally import- ing collected Junipers from Taiwan and subsequently grafting them with native Juniper foliage (i.e. mostly using Itoigawa foliage). I’m not sure what the motiva- tion is—perhaps a sense of national pride—but there seems to be very little or no mention after-the-fact that these trees were imported. Most nurserymen simply refer to them as grafted yamadori Shimpaku. In any case, there is a seemingly never-ending supply of high-quality material entering the Japanese bonsai market, which is one thing that makes working here so exciting.
How does a client of Kouka-en decide when to put a tree into shows like Kokufu-ten or Taikan-ten?
The Kokufu-ten, or National Exhibition, is the pre- mier show in Japan, and all entries go through a pre- judging process—more than 50% are weeded out prior to the exhibition. In contrast, the Taikan-ten does not require trees to be pre-judged by a larger commit- tee. When a client decides to put a tree in either of these shows, they nearly always consult a professional nursery to assess the likelihood that the tree will be accepted—as in the case of the Kokufu—or will hold up to the standards of the exhibition—as in the case of the Taikan-ten. Once the decision has been made to exhibit a tree in one of these exhibitions, profes- sional nurseries then take the trees into their care and transport them to the events on behalf of the clients. This is mainly done to avoid having too many people swarming the event halls on set-up day.
Is there a monetary incentive to win at a show or is it about status?
There are no monetary awards given to Kokufu-ten or Taikan-ten winners—it’s status that drives most individuals to display their trees in these shows.
I think you and your young colleagues have success- fully altered the perception that bonsai is for old people. What is your next big challenge?
My next biggest challenge is to complete my appren- ticeship, receive certification from the Japanese Bonsai Association and continue to expand global under- standing of bonsai art. My schedule is jam-packed for the next few years, but I’m hoping to establish a larger
Top; apprentice Yuri Hamaya prepares trees for the Taikan-ten exhibition held in November.
Middle; it takes two people to move most of the large trees that will be exhibited or sold at Taikan-ten.
Bottom; apprentices work late into the night to ensure their trees are meticulously groomed for the Taikan-ten exhibition.
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