Kokufu Bonsai Ten Shows, Part I

Kokufu Bonsai Ten, Part I

("National Bonsai Exhibition")

Koku Fu Bon Sai Ten

This Page Last Updated: December 2, 2011

Overview

The Shows by Year

Some Photos

Observations

Some Albums

Notes

This now eight-day February national exhibit of bonsai is the largest and most prestigious of all bonsai shows worldwide. The Nippon Bonsai Association (NBA), the official sponsor of the event, has worked diligently over many years to insure that only the finest bonsai in Japan are displayed. To win one of the several prizes or sho awarded greatly enhances the career of the stylist and honors the owner of the outstanding tree. In a given year there may be anywhere from one to five of the prizes awarded. However, the Kokufu sho is not given if there is not a worthy tree. Once a tree does win the prize, it is never again eligible for another Kokufu sho but it still can be entered additional times for display only.
The Kokufu sho is a "trophy" as a simple shikishi board, used for paintings. It is gold-colored with kanji characters which read "Kokufu Prize." A monetary prize is not attached, but there is a certificate which often can then be hung in the owner's home. The shikishi board is often displayed with the bonsai when exhibited in other shows. It is common for the top Kokufu Prize bonsai from the February exhibition to be displayed along with the board at the Taikan exhibition the following November. (The latter is the "Great Viewing Exhibit" held in Kyoto. This outstanding, four-day national exhibit of bonsai is the largest and best of the late season shows, first held in 1981. This is another of the exhibits that is held for hobbyists, although many of the better trees have been styled and maintained by bonsai professionals.)


Kokufu Prize, 2011: Informal upright style Japanese five-needle pine (Pinus parviflora); it also received the Prime Minister Award at the Taikan Ten Exhibition in November 2010.	Kokufu Prize, 2011: Slant style Japanese flowering apricot (Prunus mume)

Prize winning Korean hornbeam at the 85th Kokufu ten, 2011

Kokufu Prize, 2011: Twin-trunk Korean hornbeam
(Carpinus turczaninowii)

       For the 2011 show there were five National Prizes: Japanese flowering Apricot, Sargents Juniper, Ezo Spruce, Korean Hornbeam, and a Japanese Five-needle Pine. Forty-five trees were listed as important Bonsai Masterpieces. In comparison, for the first half of the double-show 2006 year, three of the National Prizes were awarded. A Japanese five-needle pine 'Zuisho', a shimpaku juniper (Juniperus chinensis var. 'Sargenti' -- see photo below), and a chojubai (Chaenomeles japonica 'chojubai', dwarf flowering-quince) were most highly esteemed by the panel of sixteen award judges.
       For the second half, there were five National Prizes awarded: another chojubai dwarf flowering-quince, a Japanese five-needle pine (Pinus pentaphylla), a Chinese quince (Pseudocydonia sinensis), a Needle juniper (Juniperus rigida), and a shohin bonsai display.

       The bonsai displayed range from large specimens (up to about 120 cm or 48" tall) to the small shohin-sized trees (less than 25 cm or 10" in height). Although taking place in the dead of winter, nothing is forced to bloom or bud early for the show. The Japanese like to see their bonsai in their natural form. Therefore, the foliage of the Japanese yew, cryptomeria and Needle juniper will mostly be in the reddish winter coloring. And all deciduous trees are represented: true, the majority are still intricate silhouettes, but the early bloomers (literally) are covered in festive pastels.
       Approximately 260 trees are now displayed annually in the Metropolitan Art Museum (Tōkyō Bijutsukan) in Ueno Park in northeastern Tokyo. Every ten years the show is doubled to about 520 trees. (Since its opening in 1926, the museum has been very popular among citizens as a venue for public exhibitions by nationally and internationally renowned fine arts organizations. The museum was last renovated in 1975.)
       [In 2011 and 2012 the show was/will be moved to the Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center, located across the street from the Asakusa Kannon Temple in Asakusa, less than a mile to the east of Ueno, while the museum is remodeled/rebuilt. "The exhibition [here] is all in one room, on the 7th floor. It must have been an ordeal to move over 250 bonsai and display tables in elevators all the way up to the 7th floor. Many new sections of backgrounds needed to be purchased in order to use the new venue, very expensive, as is the daily rental for the 7th floor... with its low ceiling. All the bonsai are in one large room [compared to the usual four smaller rooms], no time to sit and think... and study. The number of entries decreased slightly as [some] owners did not want their prize bonsai displayed in the Industrial Trade Center, they preferred the Art Museum.]
       The Kokufu show is usually housed on two basement floors of the Museum. The lowest level contains all the large bonsai, which comprise the majority of displays. The upper floor showcases the shohin and small bonsai. This grouping of trees by size prevents the overpowering of some bonsai by proximity to others. The bonsai are displayed in four rooms which allows one to mentally rest between studying the bonsai.
       The bonsai exhibition is open to the general public and is always seen by crowds. Over 40,000 visitors annually were viewing the show in the early 1990s. (36,000 braved the heavy snows in 1994.) During the last few years, though, attendance has been as low as around 15,000. Between 30,000 and 35,000 people were expected to view the two-part show in 2006 -- the first part's attendance was estimated to be over 15,000 persons. Approximately 28,000 people visited the 2007 exhibition. In 2010, the attendance was only about 17,000 people, but many foreign groups from Italy, France, Spain, etc. did attend. The admission price is ¥1,000 (currently about 11.97 USD or 8.86 Euro).

Kokufu ten No. 80 Admission Ticket, 2006

2006, No. 80 Admission Ticket

       On the northwest shore of Lake Shinobazu (see also this panorama) in Ueno Park is the Bai ten. This is the bonsai sales area set up to accommodate bonsai shoppers visiting the Kokufu Ten. Bai ten is a mostly uncovered lot that is centered around a three-story building called the "Green Club." This Ueno Green Club is where bonsai vendors, nursery owners, and potters from all over Japan of every stripe set up stalls selling their wares. Perhaps four dozen vendors are inside the building there and another five dozen are outside. As vendors pay a little more for exhibit space inside the Green Club, it is typically filled with higher-quality wares. Bai ten is one of the highlights of a bonsai tour to Japan. Not only are there hundreds of great trees, pots, tools and other bonsai paraphernalia on site, but they are all for sale. A 10-minute free shuttle bus trip from the museum runs continuously throughout the day to the "club" area. Sometimes an auction is also held. (The Tokyo Green Club in Ueno often has shows here on weekends throughout the year, with trees, pots, tools, books, and magazines for sale.)
       The Ueno Green Club is also where all the trees entered for the Kokufu Ten are brought about two weeks before the exhibit for judging. Only the top trees are selected by the thirteen show judges, each of whom has a list of all the entrees. This way the judges know that if there are, for example, perhaps twenty ume (Prunus mume, Japanese flowering plum) entered, they will be very critical on how each tree is evaluated, in contrast to a situation where if only a single pomegranate is entered, the judges might perhaps then make a few allowances so that a well-represented exhibit results. After the selection process is completed, the trees are then taken away and returned a few days before the show at the museum. Only professional bonsai artists may bring the trees, like "tree handlers." It costs the tree's owner the equivalent of about $200 to have a single tree pre-judged. If the tree is actually selected for the show, about another $600 fee is required for its entry in the Kokufu Ten about three weeks after the judging.

       Each professional artist is allocated a certain section in the show to display each of his customers' trees. Mr. Morimae, for example in 2006, had seven trees accepted. Once he got to the museum he saw the seven areas next to each other, and proceeded to set up his customers' trees there. Setting up the show is a communal effort, so after one's trees are unloaded and set up (with a little help from friends), the next few hours are spent helping other nurseries, for instance, complete their displays. Artists look for eye movement direction and tree species in arranging the trees. Usually an evergreen is positioned next to a deciduous or broadleaf tree. After each artist finished placing his customer's trees, Mr. Hiroshi Takeyama (b. 1941), the third and current chairman of the NBA (since 2003), made small adjustments. All the positions are numbered from 1 to about 265. After the final positioning was done, the show guide was completed because nobody knew the exact location of the trees until the last minute. The printer then produced the guide overnight.
       The NBA publishes a high-quality catalog or photo book afterwards to commemorate each show (see below photos). Each album comes packaged in a slipcase box, the cover of which has a different photo than the album cover itself. Usually the trees are photographed at night during the show. Several stages are set up and each tree is brought there for photos.
       For a double-show year, like 2006, the show is closed for a day as the first round of trees is switched out, the second group is brought in, arranged, and a second show guide is finalized and printed. The show then resumes.

       The bonsai are displayed by the owner's name, not the artist who created them. It is very rare that a bonsai masterpiece has only one artist. Usually the last person who handled the bonsai receives all the accolades and the people who risked their lives to collect the trees, the people who cared for it and established it, and others who may have done some preliminary training do not. Only the last person who does something to the tree becomes "famous."
       (In Japan, the professional bonsai artists have their own exhibition -- Nippon Bonsai Sakufu Ten (Japan Bonsai Creator's Exhibition). In early December (previously early January), their bonsai are displayed with the latest artist's name, not that of the owner. It is very common to have one bonsai displayed in the Sakufu Ten and then have it displayed in the Kokufu Ten with different names only a month or two apart. The Japanese have their bonsai on display to show the beauty of these wonderful trees. Of course most of the Japanese artists know who "created" the masterpiece, but it is the tree that gets the award. For the Sakufu Ten where the exhibition books are sold in December at the show, the trees are actually judged and photographed the previous October.)
       Master designer and artist Masahiko Kimura (b. 1940) worked on 50 of the 265 trees entered into the second half of the 2006 Kokufu Ten. The shimpaku juniper from the first half which was awarded a Kokufu prize had also been designed and displayed by Kimura for a client. (Kimura worked on 70 to 80 trees of the 2011 show, both deciduous and evergreen specimens.)
       The first American to have an entry selected for inclusion in the show was Doug Paul from Kennett Square, PA. His Japanese hemlock (Tsuga diversifolia) was being shown at the 2010 exhibition (see photo below). Doug is on the NBF Board of Directors. (This hemlock bonsai was recently purchased by Doug in Japan from Isao Omachi and will be going through the lengthy two year post-entry quarantine period before it arrives to The Kennett Collection.)
       Constantino Franchi of Italy had a Ficus titled "Made in Tuscany" in the 71st Kokufu Ten in 1997. That tree was subsequently adopted by Kunio Kobayashi for his collection. A California juniper (Juniperus californica) designed by American Ernie Kuo was donated to Prime Minister Obuchi and was displayed at the 74th Kokufu Ten in 2000. (This juniper has not faired well in the Tokyo area and is said to be nearly dead in a large wooden box at the Kato garden.) Polish artist Mario Komsta, an apprentice of teachers Nobuichi Urushibata in Shizuoka and Masahiko Kimura in Saitama for a few years, was a recent exhibitor. Mario had a Japanese red pine (Pinus densiflora) selected for the 80th Kokufu Ten in 2006. That tree was styled for a customer. And a number of other non-Japanese have assisted during their apprenticeships to Japanese bonsai masters in preparing trees for other showings.

       Many of the famous "Japanese" bonsai (Chinese quince, Korean Hornbeam, Pomegranate) often displayed in Kokufu Ten were originally imported from Korea, China, Taiwan, etc., either as field-grown or, less commonly, collected stock.

       From 1914 through 1933, the All-Japan Bonsai Exhibition was held annually in Hibiya Park in Tokyo. (Another large annual show during this period was the Zen Nihon Bonsai Ten, also in Tokyo. These displays were held from 1928 to at least 1931, and each was also commemorated with an illustrated show album of perhaps 80 pages in length.) Beginning in 1934, the Kokufu Ten succeeded the Hibya Park exhibit and it is now the oldest continuous -- except during World War II -- public exhibit in Japan. Author, editor and publisher Norio Kobayashi (1889-1972) was the driving force behind the establishment of the Kokufu Bonsai Society and the Kokufu Ten exhibition. The President of the House of Peers and miniature bonsai enthusiast, Count Yorinaga (Raiju) Matsudaira (1874-1944), was the society's first president. Ninety-six trees were in that initial exhibition.
        Because of a rapid increase in the number of bonsai enthusiasts in Japan in the early 1960s, the need to transform the private Kokufu Bonsai Society into a nationwide public organization became obvious. In February 1965 the Kokufu Bonsai Society was dissolved and reorganized to become the parent body of the Nippon Bonsai Association. Shigeru Yoshida (1878-1967), the former diplomat to London who had been the first prime minister in post-war Japan until 1954, was its first president. The NBA assumed the role of organizer of the annual Kokufu Bonsai Exhibitions. The association currently has more than 300 chapters nationwide with approximately 20,000 members and some 300 other members in 30 countries throughout the world.

(Initial material from "The Best Bonsai and Suiseki Exhibits in Japan" by Thomas S. Elias, originally on pg. 12 (of pp. 10-14 article) of the May/June 2002 issue of Bonsai Clubs International's Bonsai Magazine); with some additional material from Morita, Kazuya and NBA Editorial Staff "Bonsai in Japan," in Tsukiyama, Ted T. (ed.) Bonsai of the World, Book I (Japan: World Bonsai Friendship Federation, 1993), pp. 89-90; Kobayashi, Norio Bonsai -- Miniature Potted Trees (Tokyo: Japan Travel Bureau, Inc.; 1951, 1962, 1966), pg. 167; Bonsai Tonight's article "Green Club", and "The Kokufu Gamble" by Cheryl Manning, a revised and expanded version of an article that originally appeared in Golden Statements magazine; plus substantial material from personal e-mails to RJB from William N. Valavanis, especially while the latter was in Tokyo during the 2006 show. Exhibition re-location per e-mail from WNV 7 Jan 2010, and Sakufu Ten move from January to December per WNV 30 Nov 2011. And material from the discussion thread, http://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/announcements-f5/american-s-bonsai-display-at-kokufu-bonsai-ten-exhibition-t2266.htm. Quote from 2011 from WNV posting to Internet Bonsai Forum, 15 Feb 2011, http://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t5641-2011-85th-kokufu-bonsai-exhibition)

The following was compiled to provide an easy listing of which show took place in what year and vice-versa.
Several sources were studied and compared for this info. The show dates from 1934 through 1983 are per Valavanis' study
of the NBA's 50th Anniversary book and later works.

A brief summary: Eighty-four actual shows to date (There was no No. 19).
Two shows (Mar-Apr and Nov-Dec) in each of these ten years: 1934-1937, 1939-1942, 1948, and 1954.
No shows in these four years: 1944-1946 and 1959.
One show in Nov-Dec in 1938 and 1947; one show in March 1943; one show in December in 1949-1953, 1955-1958.
One show every year in February since 1960.
The record for attendance goes to grandmaster Saburō Katō (1915-2008) who, it is believed,
was the only person to attend every one of the first 80 Kokufu Ten (there was not a No. 19)
which had been held up to the time of his death (on the eve of the 82nd show).

Year	Show	Notes	Year	Show	Notes	Year	Show	Notes
1934	1st, 2nd	March 17-20; Album size: 15 x 22 cm, 96 pp.; Dec. 5-10; 15 x 22 cm, 96 pp.	1962	36th	Feb. 15-19; 18 x 25 cm, 162 pp.	1990	64th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp.
1935	3rd, 4th	March 7-12; 15 x 22 cm Nov. 24-28 15 x 22 cm	1963	37th	Feb. 15-19	1991	65th	Feb. 9-16; 26 x 25 cm, 262 pp.
1936	5th, 6th	Apr. 5-8; 15 x 22 cm, 98 pp.; Nov. 29 - Dec. 4 15 x 22 cm, 98 pp.	1964	38th	Feb. ? ; 18 x 25 cm	1992	66th	Feb. ? ; 262 pp.
1937	7th, 8th	Mar. 21-25; 15 x 22 cm, 98 pp.; Nov. 27-30 15 x 22 cm, 98 pp.	1965	39th	Feb. 15-20; 181 bonsai and 24 suiseki displayed	1993	67th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 262 pp.
1938	9th	Nov. 27 - Dec. 1 15 x 22 cm, 98 pp.	1966	40th	Feb. 15-20	1994	68th	Feb. 10-17; 26 x 25 cm, 262 pp.; 248 selected entries (40% of those applying)
1939	10th, 11th	March 10-12; 15 x 22 cm, 96 pp.; Nov. 26-29 15 x 22 cm, 96 pp.	1967	41st	Feb. 15-20	1995	69th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 260 pp.
1940	12th, 13th	March 15-18; Dec. 1-3; 19 x 26 cm, 98 pp.	1968	42nd	Feb. 15-20; 19 x 26 cm, 211 pp.; 203 selected entries	1996	70th	Feb. 8-16; Double album (WNV) 26 x 25 cm, 492 pp.
1941	14th, 15th	March 14-15; Nov. 27-30	1969	43rd	Feb. 15-21; 19 x 27 cm, 203 pp.; 203 selected entries	1997	71st	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 262 pp.
1942	16th, 17th	? Nov. 7-8; No album published	1970	44th	Feb. 14-21; 19 x 26 cm, 210 pp.; 202 selected entries	1998	72nd	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 270 pp.
1943	18th	March 19-21; No album published	1971	45th	Feb. 15-21 26 x 19 cm., 209 pp.; 201 selected entries	1999	73rd	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 279 pp.
1944	19th	March 19-21, but cancelled because exhibition halls were being used for war planning -- never held (DrE)	1972	46th	Feb. 16-22; 26 x 19 cm, 200 pp. Color pictures were introduced in the commemorative albums (WNV)	2000	74th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 279 pp. 265 trees, each with a companion plant.
1945	none	---	1973	47th	Feb. 15-21; 26 x 19 cm, 196 pp.	2001	75th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 279 pp.
1946	none	---	1974	48th	Feb. 15-21; 26 x 19 cm, 215 pp.; 200 selected entries.	2002	76th	Feb. 9-16; 25.5 x 24.0 cm, 281 pp.
1947	20th	Nov. 29 - Dec. 3; 18 x 25 cm, 128 pp.	1975	49th	Feb. 14-22; 26 x 19 cm, 190 pp.	2003	77th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 281 pp.
1948	21st, 22nd	March 19-21; 19 x 26 cm, 87 pp. Dec. 1-4; 19 x 26 cm, 87 pp.	1976	50th	Feb. 5-13; 26 x 25 cm, 204 pp.	2004	78th	Feb. 8-15; 26 x 25 cm, 281 pp.
1949	23rd	Dec. 1-4	1977	51st	Feb. 4-11; 26 x 25 cm, 229 pp.	2005	79th	Feb. 9-16; 26 x 25 cm, 281 pp.
1950	24th	Dec. 7-10	1978	52nd	Feb. 4-11; 26 x 25 cm, 228 pp.; 215 selected entries out of 400 applications (54%)	2006	80th	Feb. 9-12, 14-17; Double album, 26 x 25 cm, 507 pp., 500 photos 470 trees
1951	25th	Dec. 6-10	1979	53rd	Feb. 4-11; 26 x 25 cm, 228 pp.	2007	81st	Feb. 9-16; 26 x 25 cm, 286 pp.; 265 selected entries out of 445 applications (60%): 83 conifers, 93 deciduous, 76 medium-sized, 14 shohin compositions;
1952	26th	Dec. 10-14	1980	54th	Feb. 5-11; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp.	2008	82nd	Feb. 9-16; 26 x 25 cm, 285 pp.; 265 selected entries out of 414 applications (64%): 102 conifers, 89 deciduous, 63 medium-sized, 11 shohin compositions
1953	27th	Dec. 11-16	1981	55th	Feb. 5-11; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp.	2009	83rd	Feb. 8-15; 26 x 25 cm, 285 pp.
1954	28th 29th	? Dec. 11-15; 15 x 21 cm, 113 pp.	1982	56th	Feb. 6-13; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp.	2010	84th	Feb. 9-17 (Holiday on 15th); 26 x 25 cm, 235 pp.; 265 selected entries out of 389 applications (68%), + 4 special exhibits
1955	30th	Dec. 10-14	1983	57th	Feb. 6-13; 26 x 25 cm, 235 pp.	2011	85th	Feb. 13-20; 245 selected entries out of 346 applications (70.8%), + 8 special displays; only 9 shohin compositions (48 pcs) this year; 2 suiseki used as accents; 2 very large forests displayed alone w/o accessories
1956	31st	Dec. 11-16; 18 x 25 cm	1984	58th	Feb. 4-14; 26 x 25 cm, 232 pp.	2012	86th	Feb. 3-10 ?
1957	32nd	Dec. 13-18	1985	59th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 235 pp.	2013
1958	33rd	Dec. 13-18	1986	60th	Feb. ? ; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp. Double album (WNV)	2014
1959	none	due to planned change-over in exhibition dates	1987	61st	Feb. 8-15; 26 x 25 cm, 231 pp.	2015
1960	34th	Feb. 13-17	1988	62nd	Feb. ? ; 25.5 x 24.0 cm, 231 pp.	2016
1961	35th	Feb. 15-19; 18 x 25 cm, 175 pp.	1989	63rd	Feb. ? ; 26 x 24.5 cm, 229 pp.	2017