I have waited to create this thread until I’ve had a change to show this tree at the Winter Silohette show in Kannapolis. And I’m glad I did. Bill Valavanis was there, and he knows more about the history of the tree than even the prior owner! So here it is in it’s leafless glory:
This is just a snapshot I took of it on Joe Noga’s photography studio while he was setting up to take a professional picture. When I get a copy of his image, I’ll update this thread.
I learned a great deal about the history, the provenance, of this tree. Unfortunately, some of the things I thought I knew about the tree that had been told to me by the previous owner were incorrect. Mr. Valavanis is a bonsai historian, and he has an amazing memory as well as an amazing library of bonsai books, photographs, and magazines and articles. So, let me set the record straight about this tree:
There is an issue of International Bonsai magazine, 1994, No.3, where he documents the history in detail, but I will summarize it here. This tree was likely started from seed circa 1920 when Zelkova bonsai was becoming popular in Japan. It appeared in the 28th. Kokufu-ten Exhibition in 1954, the year I was born. In 1968, it was offered at a commercial bonsai auction. It was purchased at auction by Yuji Yoshimura for Samuel Beach. Mr. Beach had the tree imported to New York, and it was strong enough to withstand the bare rooting and fumigation process. Mr. Beach sold the tree in 1986 to Mr. Steven Ohman who has owned it until he recently sold the tree to myself. The only time Mr. Ohman exhibited the tree was at the National Exhibition in September 2021.
This is just a snapshot I took of it on Joe Noga’s photography studio while he was setting up to take a professional picture. When I get a copy of his image, I’ll update this thread.
I learned a great deal about the history, the provenance, of this tree. Unfortunately, some of the things I thought I knew about the tree that had been told to me by the previous owner were incorrect. Mr. Valavanis is a bonsai historian, and he has an amazing memory as well as an amazing library of bonsai books, photographs, and magazines and articles. So, let me set the record straight about this tree:
There is an issue of International Bonsai magazine, 1994, No.3, where he documents the history in detail, but I will summarize it here. This tree was likely started from seed circa 1920 when Zelkova bonsai was becoming popular in Japan. It appeared in the 28th. Kokufu-ten Exhibition in 1954, the year I was born. In 1968, it was offered at a commercial bonsai auction. It was purchased at auction by Yuji Yoshimura for Samuel Beach. Mr. Beach had the tree imported to New York, and it was strong enough to withstand the bare rooting and fumigation process. Mr. Beach sold the tree in 1986 to Mr. Steven Ohman who has owned it until he recently sold the tree to myself. The only time Mr. Ohman exhibited the tree was at the National Exhibition in September 2021.
