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You are invited to be a part of the BCI Vision.
We are raising funds for the future of BCI! Any donation you can make, will help.
Remember BCI in your will, your trust, your future!
For more information contact: Thomas S. Elias; tselias@msn.com
WFrom the editor
hile attending a bonsai exhibit recently in Victoria on Vancouver Island, I was reminded that bonsai is thriving in areas relatively new to this art form—if we agree that 25 to 50 years is a very short
period in the bonsai continuum. Not-for-profit organizations like BCI have played an important role in introducing and promoting the art forms of bonsai and viewing stones to many.
My local bonsai club, Bonsai Winnipeg, is an example of how BCI helped us overcome our geographic isolation and facilitate our bonsai and viewing stone education. Since 1980 we have depended on BCI to connect us to the greater bonsai community. Before the Internet, BCI was a source of activities for monthly club meetings; a lending library of books and video tapes; and Introduction to Bonsai, a course syllabus, by Thomas L. Zane that included manuals for instructors and students. This material guided moderately experienced bonsai hobbyists in introducing the art form to beginners, giving them enough knowledge and confidence to start them on their bonsai journey. The highlight of our association with BCI was, and is, the magazine. While other magazines in the ’80s and ’90s focused on the Japanese aesthetic and presented the work of renowned Japanese masters, it was in the BCI magazine where we saw bonsai evolve and spread as BCI profiled the work of its members practicing bonsai in different cultures around the world in unique climates and with local plant species.
Six delegates from our club attended the BCI Annual Conference hosted by the Toronto Bonsai Society in 1997, the first time anyone in our club experience world-class bonsai and demonstrators such as Marc Noelanders, William Valavanis, John Naka, David DeGroot, Norman Haddrick and Chase Rosade, among many others. We learned to appreciate our native species such as thuja occidentalis and larix laricina and to develop larger size bonsai. It was our first exposure to penjing and the Chinese artist Qingquan “Brook” Zhao, who had just released his book, Penjing: Worlds of Wonderment, beautifully designed by Karin Albert. It was through BCI that our club discovered and engaged teachers like Arthur Skolnik, David Rowe, Jerry Meislik, Mary Madison, Chiara Padrini and Dan Robinson.
While some of these BCI programs have come and gone with the volunteers that created and administered them or have been made obsolete by technology and the Internet, BCI continues to evolve and reflect the work of the current group of volunteers that govern BCI as they connect and interact with bonsai and stone lovers around the world. Their collective knowledge and experiences enable them to transcend geographic diversity and cultures to promote and present the best that bonsai and viewing stone appreciation has to offer. This issue is a reflection of the progress that BCI has made and the substantial work by volunteer directors and members to help us all appreciate bonsai and viewing stones everywhere
—Joe Grande, Canada (bcieditor@grandesign.net) 2 | BCI | April/May/June 2015
MISSION STATEMENT
BONSAI CLUBS INTERNATIONAL
Bonsai Clubs International, a not-for-profit educational organization, advances the ancient and living art of bonsai and related arts through the global sharing of knowledge. We educate while promoting international friendship and solidify world relationships through cooperation with individuals and organizations whose purpose is consistent with ours.
OFFICERS
Thomas S. Elias, President California, USA tselias@msn.com
Glenis Bebb, 1st Vice President Queensland, Australia glen@bonsainursery.com.au
Nikunj Parekh, 2nd Vice President Mumbai, India nikunjyo@gmail.com
Kath Hughes,
Secretary
West Midlands, UK mkhughes567@btinternet.com
IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT
Robert Kempinski, Florida, USA rkempinski@cfl.rr.com
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Helen Su
Taiwan, R.O.C. hweiying.cheng@gmail.com
BCI CLUB NEWSLETTER
Frank Mihalic, Editor, USA
mihalicf@yahoo.com
DIRECTORS
Massimo Bandera, Italy
mb@massimobandera.it
Gudrun Benz, Germany
Benz-W@t-online.de
Vic Ceballos, Philippines
chilloutprof@yahoo.com
Kathy Coffman, Ohio, USA
kcoffman.coffman1@gmail.com
Min Hsuan Lo, Taiwan
bonsailo@mail2000.com.tw
Frank Mihalic, USA
mihalicf@yahoo.com
Ing Suan Ng, Malaysia
isng1818@gmail.com
Budi Sulistyo, Indonesia
budisulistyo22@gmail.com
BCI BUSINESS OFFICE
Carole Roske, Business Manager PO Box 40463
Bay Village, OH 44140-9998 USA bcimanager@visn.net
TO JOIN BCI OR RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP
New members, go to www.bonsai-bci.com and click on “Join BCI Today” button. Renewing members, log in to your account and go to Manage My Profile/Renew My Membership.
Join or Renew Online, by Phone, by E-mail or by Mail.
www.bonsai-bci.com, bcimanager@visn.net, phone 440-871-4797,
PO Box 40463,
Bay Village, OH 44140-9998 USA.