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“For everything that is tropical bonsai, the best place on earth is Taiwan. The BCI Convention this year was a must for all and I was really proud to be in the event. I can only imagine the di culties of organizing such a magni cent and popular convention. Mr. Chen, Mr Lo and all the sta did a wonderful job for such a complex crowd that we were. All the areas were top quality, so I would have to speculate that it will be di cult to top such a convention in any other country.” —Enrique Castaño, BCI Director, Mexico.
Left to right, row one; Mr. Tsang-Shing Chen, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of BCI 2017; Ambassador Xi-Zeng Song, Representative of the Ministry of Foreign A airs; Ms. Glenis Bebb, President of BCI.
Left to right, row two; Mr. Paiman Mak, Honored Founding President of ASPAC Bonsai Association; Mr. Po-Sung Hsueh, President of the National Bonsai Association of Taiwan (NBAT ), Mr. Chu-Hsun Kuo, President of MinDou University.
Top right; Dignitaries o cially open the convention.
Middle and bottom; The main exhibition hall at Xizhou Park, the welcoming tree is a very well-known tree in an amazing display. The tree is a Podocarpus macrophyllus standing 76 cm tall. It is in the collection of Chin-Tsun Chiang, a founder and 1st president of the National Bonsai Association of Taiwan.
On November 4, on behalf of the preparatory and executives com- mittees of the 2017 Bonsai Clubs International (BCI) Convention and the Asia-Paci c (ASPAC) Bonsai and Suiseki Convention and Exhibition, Mr. Tsang-Shing Chen, Chairman, welcomed friends from BCI and ASPAC, as well as bonsai- and suiseki-loving collec-
tors and artists from afar, to this epic convention and the 22nd Hwa-Fong National Bonsai Exhibition.
e occasion, marking the 55th anniversary of the founding of BCI, was cel- ebrated by representatives from over 58 countries. e conference showcased over 500 bonsai and suiseki of exceptional quality. Organizers lined up 21 acclaimed bonsai masters from around the world and ve Taiwanese bonsai masters to pro- vide demonstrations. ey also invited German stone collector, Gudrun Benz to
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