Part 1Clark Bonsai Collection

Spring, 2024

COME CELEBRATE WORLD BONSAI DAY, SATURDAY MAY 11!

Have a delicious
Kuppa Joy Coffee

Watch bonsai
demonstrations

Draw or color bonsai

Take a bonsai making classat 11am for $60(Page 2)

Take a docent
led bonsai tour

CURATOR’S MESSAGE
EVENTS

Gree ngs my friends,

New & Renewed Bonsai
We o en speak of the Clark Bonsai Collec on in museum
terms. We refer to our Bonsai as assets. We record theirExhibition
speci c a ributes in a master database in a process called
March 23-June 23“accessioning” (museum speak for inventory). We present
World Bonsai Day May 11 10-4
them to visitors in “exhibi ons” that o er informa on about
gsbfclarkbonsaicollection.org/activities/
the individual exhibit and the art of Bonsai in general. We
Strides for Wellness in ShInzen
employ docents to greet visitors, help them to understandThursday, May 16 3-630pm
what they see and enjoy their experience. We are open to
the public with regularly scheduled hours of opera on andwww.shinzenjapanesegarden.org/
event/strides-for-wellness/
conduct community outreach to promote our contribu on to the public good.
Recently we have started to ask ourselves, if we are func oning as aJapanese Culture Day at themuseum, could we actually be one, by legal de ni on? A li le research reveals theFresno Art Museum June 2State of California de nes a museum as. “Public or private nonpro t ins tu ons
Bonsai Lecture & Demosthat are organized on a permanent basis for essen ally educa onal or aesthe cpurposes and that own or use tangible objects, care for those objects and exhibit
them to the general public on a regular basis.”
According to the Museum Field Guide, “Good design and interpreta on are essen al ingredients for a successful museum. It is
not enough simply to put objects in a gallery. Visitors need help in understanding objects, making sense of museum collec ons andpu ng them in context.”
According to Running a Museum: A Prac cal Handbook,“The func ons of a museum are collec on, exhibi on, conserva on,
research and educa on. Museums collect ar facts, and documents to display and research. They hold both temporary and permanentexhibi ons to educate he public about culture, art science and more.”
Well heck, it seems we are indeed a museum, and a pre y good one based on our growing na onal recogni on. Having said
that I must also point out that the actual opera on of a museum involves much more than the de ni ons above imply. It takes
dedicated people, lots of them. It takes funding, lots of it, and it takes an organiza on to put the people together with the funding torealize a vision. In our case, our vision is to be a museum of Bonsai.
I am pleased to inform you that we have taken the necessary steps to form a nonpro t organiza on, the Bonsai Founda onof the Central Valley with the primary func on of suppor ng the Clark Bonsai Collec on in the form of the Clark Bonsai Museum.
Please join us as we con nue the Journey started long ago by Bill and Libby Clark. We will need your help and support tomeet the many challenges before us.

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1Due to the Boots in the Park event in Woodward
Park on Saturday, those planning to attend theWorld Bonsai Day activities in the Clark
Collection bonsai garden in Shinzen, would dowell to come in the morning. The country concert
and all its many other attractions can attract
thousands. Although the concert is 5-10pm, theother event gates open at noon. Many attendees
park outside the park and walk in, but traf c andparking will cause delays and congestion.
SOME BONSAI ARTISTRY IN THE GARDEN

Spring, 2024

CBCS World Bonsai Day
Saturday, May 11 10am-4pm
Bonsai-Making Class 11am $60
Par cipants will learn about the art ofbonsai and make their own bonsai totake home with them with clear andsimple instruc ons for bonsai care.
You can register online at

gsbfclarkbonsaicollec on.org
or in person in the bonsai garden in

Other Ac vi es—All Free!
Julian Tsai and John Wright perform some last minute grooming for
the Sawara Cypress to get its glamor shot by Mike Baldwin. The
photo will be part of its applica on to appear in the Paci c
Exposi on: An Exhibi on of Extraordinary Bonsai in Oakland, CA inOctober.

Ar st CatyHas ngs enjoys
capturing thenatural beauty oft h e ga rd e n i npastels.

Henry Espinosaproudly shows o his
rst bonsai.

• Bonsai Scavenger Hunt & Draw yourfavorite bonsai with World Bonsai
S ckers for par cipants• Bonsai Coloring Sheets• H o u r l y to u rs o f t h e c u r re nt
exhibi on: New and Renewed
Bonsai and other signature bonsai
from the en re Collec on of 130world class bonsai beginning at
11am.

Kuppa Joy will be serving theirdelicious co ee beginning 11am-?
while supplies last. All proceeds go tothe Clark Bonsai Collec onfifi

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Part 1

Clark Bonsai CollectionPart 1

Clark Bonsai Collection
BONSAI OF THE MONTH

Two Views

CBCS 063
LEGACY COLLECTION: Bonsai within theCollection created by Japanese immigrants and/orJapanese Americans and maintained in the style ofthe original artist in so far as that is possible toprovide an historical spectrum in keeping with themission of a bonsai museum.

Spring, 2024

Ben Oki (1927-2018
We are pleased to announce that the ClarkBonsai Collection has received from the Huntington
Bonsai Collection a bonsai created by Ben Oki. You
may not be familiar with this name, but he was apivotal figure in the promotion and proliferation of theart of Bonsai following WWII. Ben was acontemporary of John Naka and is often regarded as
John’s successor. He was the founding Curator ofthe Huntington Bonsai Collection.
Ben was born in Sacramento California but
was not interned with other Japanese Americans at
the start of the WWII because he was living in Japan
during the war years. His family sent him to live inHiroshima at the age of 6. He survived the atomic
bombing of Hiroshima by ditching school that day togo fishing in the countryside with some of his friends.
When he returned home, it wasn’t there.
Ben was an internationally known bonsai
master and headliner at conventions, conducting
workshops, demonstrations and critiques. Ben
specialized in California Junipers and is well known
for his rugged, freeform style, fine detail work fastwiring and skillful techniques. International andNational Bonsai Design Awards were established in
his name as well as the Ben Oki Bonsai Scholarship.
You are all invited to come by the CBC andview a piece of Bonsai history and another link ourCollection now has to the common experience weshare with human history..

Artist/ Maker: Ben Oki
Common Name: California Juniper
Botanical Name: Juniperus Californica
Date Acquired: 4/26/24
Age: Est 300+
Evergreen

gsbfhuntington.com/ben-oki

Style: Shakan / Slanting occurs in nature as a resultof the wind blowing in one dominant direction orwhen a tree grows in shadow and bends toward thesun, leaning in one direction. The slant style trunk
emerges from the soil at an angle, and the apex of
the bonsai will be located to the left or right of theroot base.
Donor: Transfer from The GSBF Huntington Bonsai
Collection

You can support the Clark Bonsai
Collection and its many world class bonsai
such as this one currently on exhibit in thebonsai garden by becoming a sponsor.
Please visit
www.gsbfclarkbonsaicollection.org/adopta-tree.html to nd out about the bene tsof becoming a bonsai sponsor.

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