National Bonsai Foundation
For immediate release:
January 22, 2015
Contact: Janice L. Kaplan 202-277-5461
JaniceLKaplan@JaniceLKaplan.com
Exhibition Will Feature Beautiful and Unusual Bonsai Pots by American Artists
The Japanese word bonsai translates as “tree in pot,” yet it is the tree that typically gets the attention. A juried
exhibition at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. will feature beautiful and unusual handmade
bonsai containers by well-known and emerging American artists. “The Third National Juried Bonsai Pot
Exhibition” will be on view June 12 through Aug. 2 at the Arboretum’s National Bonsai & Penjing Museum.
Deadline for entries is March 21. (Visit https://www.bonsai-nbf.org/national-bonsai-pot-competition/.) The
exhibit will feature seven styles: round, oval, rectangle, cascade/semi-cascade, containers for shohin (bonsai
that are only four to 10 inches high), containers for kusamono (arrangements of wild grasses and flowers) and
experimental containers that push the boundaries of traditional design. Monetary prizes will be awarded in each
category.
“Bonsai containers bring out the best qualities in a tree,” said Ron Lang who is coordinating the exhibit with
Sharon Edwards-Russell. “Our goal is to tap into the current sensibility for bonsai in the U.S. and identify ways
of situating bonsai trees that are different from the traditional Asian style.”
“The exhibition is in keeping with the National Bonsai Foundation’s mission of showcasing new and
experimental ideas relating to the art of bonsai,” said NBF President Felix Laughlin. “With this exhibition, we
are pushing the boundaries of a typical bonsai display.” NBF sponsored national bonsai pot competitions in
2001 and 2003 as well.)
The featured pots will represent a diversity of colors, glazes, shapes and designs. A unique category for
“Experimental Design” is intended to invite artists to investigate non-traditional solutions for bonsai containers.
The exhibition will be selected and awards presented by a panel of jurors including Deborah Bedwell, President
of the National Council on Education in the Ceramic Arts and former Executive Director of Baltimore
Clayworks; Michael Hagedorn, a bonsai stylist, teacher and lecturer who is owner of Crataegus Bonsai and a
founding member of the Portland Bonsai Village in Oregon; and Sara Rayner, a Minnesota-based potter who
has been making bonsai containers for half of her 30-year career. The exhibition will also feature pots by the
jurors and exhibit organizers.
In an adjacent outdoor space, the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum will display trees in American-made pots
from the Museum’s permanent collection, as well as from the Kennett Collection in Pennsylvania and other
regional collections.
The exhibit is sponsored by the National Bonsai Foundation, the Kennett Collection and Bonsai Shinsei New
York. It is being held in conjunction with the 2015 American Bonsai Society Learning Seminar, “Capitol
Collections: Collecting in the 21st Century,” which will take place June 11-14 at Turf Valley in Ellicott City,
Maryland. The seminar is co-sponsored by the Potomac Bonsai Association.
The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum is the world’s most comprehensive museum of bonsai and its Chinese
counterpart, penjing. It is home to:
 The most famous bonsai in the world, known as “Goshin,” which is a forest planting designed by John
Naka, one of the fathers of American bonsai. Considered particularly beautiful, this masterwork is
known throughout the world and has been widely published.
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An almost 400-year-old white pine bonsai that survived Hiroshima. It was in one family for six
generations before they donated it to the museum.
A 200-year-old pine bonsai donated by the Emperor of Japan, one of two trees that flanked the entrance
to the imperial household. It was given as a symbolic gesture of good will between the two countries.
Bonsai that were presented to Presidents Reagan and Clinton.
Arboretum Information
Located at 3501 New York Avenue NE (a 10-minute drive from downtown Washington), the Arboretum is a
U.S. Department of Agriculture research and education facility and a living museum. It is free and open to the
public Friday through Monday. In addition to the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum, highlights include the
annual spring display of azaleas; the National Capitol Columns; the two-and-a-half acre National Herb Garden;
and Washington Youth Garden, a program of the non-profit Friends of the National Arboretum. Admission to
the Arboretum is free. For more information, visit www.usna.usda.gov or call 202-245-2726.
About the Sponsors
The National Bonsai Foundation was established in 1982 to sustain the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum. It
partners with the National Arboretum by offering financial support and advice to the museum. The
private/public collaboration enables the museum to promote the art of bonsai and penjing to visitors through
masterpiece displays and educational programs while also fostering intercultural friendship and understanding.
For information, visit www.bonsai-nbf.org or call 202-396-3510.
The Kennett Collection is a private bonsai garden located in Kennett, Pennsylvania. The collection is comprised
of a large variety of bonsai from Japan and other areas around the world. For information visit
www.thekennettcollection.com.
Bonsai Shinsei New York is metropolitan New York's only school offering comprehensive instruction in the art
of bonsai. For information visit www.bonsaishinseiny.com.
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Note to Editors: For digital images, contact JaniceLKaplan@JaniceLKaplan.com.