Page 7 - BSAM 2015 Q4

On September 16th and 17th, 320 foreign guests and over 1,000 Chinese penjing professionals and hobbyists converged on the ancient two-thousand-year-old city of Guangzhou in southeastern China for the
2015 Bonsai Clubs International (BCI) Convention and Exhibition that took place September 18 to the 21st. e meeting, e In nity of Bonsai and View- ing Stones: a Cultural Voyage from Canton to the World, was a joint a air with the Asia-Paci c Bonsai and Viewing Stone Association (ASPAC). is major event was organized by BCI, ASPAC, and the People’s Government of Guangzhou Municipality with addi- tional support from six signi cant sponsors and four co-organizers. is was a grand a air because of the broad-based support from organization such as the Administration of Forestry and Gardening of Guang- zhou Municipality, the Chinese Society of Landscape Architecture, the Guangzhou Penjing Association, BCI-China Program, and the Guangdong Provincial Viewing Stone Association. e strong nancial and logistical support of the municipal government and societies contributed to the success of this joint con- vention.
e venue was the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Park and adjacent Provincial Science Museum. e impressive, Qing dynasty-style, eight-sided Sun Yat-Sen Memori- al Hall served as a backdrop for the outdoor bonsai ex- hibition on the patio in front of the Hall. Photographs of many of the winning bonsai from the 2015 BCI photo contest were also displayed on the patio. e opening ceremony was staged in the Hall’s 3,000-seat auditorium. Vendors, o ering live plants, pots, stones, and cra s lined both sides of the walkway leading to the Hall. Bonsai styling demonstrations, lectures on viewing stones, and the large display of viewing stones, mainly from Guangdong Province, were held in the Provincial Science Museum directly across the street from the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Park.
Most foreign guests stayed in the nearby Guang- dong Hotel within close walking distance to the park and science museum. Lunches and dinner banquets were held in the Guangdong Hotel. Eliminating the need for bussing people to and from a venue site was one of the many features of this year’s convention.
Right column; Views of individual trees in the temporary exhibit on the main courtyard of the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall.
Bottom; Photographs of many of the award winning trees and stones in the 2015 BCI Photography Contest. These photographs and others will appear in the soon to be published Best of BCI-2015 (see back cover for details).
October/November/December 2015 | BCI | 5