Urban Green: Small Trees for Small Spaces
Art in the Garden Summer 2011
Kenji Kobayashi of Sinajina
and Ceramic Artists of the Oregon Potters Association
May 27-June 19
Garden Hours
Pavilion Gallery
Included with Garden Admission
Nestled along a quiet residential street in the Jiyugaoka neighborhood of Tokyo, a small modern bonsai nursery called Sinajina is leading a grassroots movement to bring people and nature together in modern-day Japan.
According to Jared Braiterman, founder of Tokyo Green Space, a research project on how green spaces make Tokyo a liveable city, “Bonsai shop Sinajina presents exquisite miniaturizations of natural landscapes. Yet this is bonsai with a difference. Owner Kenji Kobayashi is widely acclaimed for modernizing the craft and fostering an appreciation of nature to an urban clientele. Unlike traditional masters, who are only interested in trees that are already hundreds of years old, Kobayashi uses young plants and experiments with a much wider variety of pots and styles. In a culture where flowers and plants are considered disposable, Kobayashi wants young people to treat plants as members of the family, like pets, who require care and attention over time. ‘It’s not enough for city people to visit the countryside for a day,’ he says.”
Mr. Kobayashi has an interesting connection with the Portland Japanese Garden. He started his career as a student of landscape architecture under Hachiro Sakakibara, one of the Garden’s former garden directors. During his time with Mr. Sakakibara, Mr. Kobayashi traveled to Portland to continue his studies. Now, this summer’s Art in the Garden exhibition brings Mr. Kobayashi back to Portland after many years absence for an exhibition of his modern style of bonsai. A workshop will be conducted during the week Mr. Kobayashi is in residence at the Garden. This is an opportunity for participants to learn to plant and care for their creations, and take home the finished product in a handmade original container made by ceramic artists of the Oregon Potters Association. A lecture by Jared Braiterman opens the exhibition on May 26.
Underwritten in part by the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation and the Jack & Lynne Hoffman Donor Advised Fund.
New Bonsai Workshop
with Kenji Kobayashi
May 24, 1-4 p.m.
In the week leading up to the opening of the exhibition, Mr. Kobayashi will present a bonsai workshop during which participants will learn to plant and care for new bonsai. The fee includes a handmade ceramic vessel, and all potting and plant materials, with design, planting instruction, and assistance from Mr. Kobayashi. Special thanks to members of the Bonsai Society of Portland who will assist Mr. Kobayashi with the workshop.
Underwritten in part by the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation and the Jack & Lynne Hoffman Donor Advised Fund.
Lecture:
Urban Green/Tokyo Style
with Jared Braiterman
May 26, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Dr. Jared Braiterman, a design anthropologist and founder of Tokyo Green Space, will present a lecture on his research on Tokyo urban greenspaces. As a resident of Tokyo and personal friend of Mr. Kobayashi, Dr. Braiterman’s current research examines how bringing nature into the city benefits people and the environment. Dr. Braiterman received his Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from Stanford, and a B.A. from Harvard. He specializes in urban ecology, garden design, clean tech, and business innovation. Based in Tokyo since 2009, he publishes in a variety of mass media, presents at landscape design, computer, and urban design conferences, and maintains a public blog at: www.tokyogreenspace.com.
Underwritten in part by the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation and the Jack & Lynne Hoffman Donor Advised Fund.
Lecture/Demonstration:
The Art of Saikei
David De Groot, Weyerhauser Bonsai
June 16, 7:30-9 p.m.
Saikei, meaning “scenic planting” or “landscape planting” is an offshoot of bonsai that was developed and named in post-World War II Japan by bonsai nurseryman Toshio Kawamoto. The intent in most of bonsai art is to create a vision of nature via a small tree or group of trees in an artistically supportive container. It is up to the viewer to interpret the work and to create the scene surrounding that tree in his/her imagination.
A saikei artist eases the imaginative burden for the audience by using multiple materials – trees, ferns grasses or other groundcovers, as well as sand, stones and soil to surround the tree with a complete miniature landscape that might suggest hills, mountains, streams. pools, gorges, or other topographical features.
Lecturer David De Groot will introduce the art of saikei through words, images, and a demonstration in which he will explain the aesthetics and techniques involved as he creates a living saikei. A question and answer period will follow the demonstration.
David De Groot has been curator of Weyerhaeuser’s Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection since its creation in 1989. He is an award-winning designer and author, who has been studying and practicing bonsai since 1972. He has studied bonsai with Yasuo Mitsuya, satsuki with Tatemori Gondo and Hayata Nakayama, and display with Uhaku Sudo. His educational journal articles have been published throughout the U.S. and in eight foreign countries, and his book Basic Bonsai Design will appear in a newly revised and expanded edition in mid 2011. David travels widely to lecture, and has presented programs across the U.S. and in Brazil, Canada, China, England, South Africa, and Venezuela. He is active with several bonsai organizations in the Puget Sound area, and has served two terms on the board of directors of the American Bonsai Society.
Underwritten in part by the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation.
Urban Green is sponsored in part by the Mark Spencer Hotel.