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By Samantha Holm
(All photos were taken by Samantha Holm)
The 2023 ABS Learning Seminars were hosted by The Rocky Mountain Bonsai Society (RMBS) and were located throughout the gorgeous Denver Botanic Gardens. The kusamono display was set up in the "Oak Grove" which, although was a bit off the beaten path, provided a lovely backdrop and the filtered shade that the plants enjoyed during the long weekend.
The show had 17 kusamonos and highlighted the artists in the RMBS and the Denver Branch of the Purple Pot Society. Interestingly, 59% of the kusamonos were created by female artists. In the ABS bonsai show that was staged concurrently in another section of the gardens there was one female (5%) and 20 male bonsai artists, compared to the seven female (64%) and four male kusamono artists.
In a first for the ABS Learning Seminars the registered kusamonos were juried and a judging committee awarded prizes for the top three. Judging was conducted by Young Choe, Carmen Leskoviansky, and Evan Pardue. The judges awarded "Best in Show" to Samantha Holm's kusamono (shown below at top left), and "Honorable Mention" to Mike Britten's (top right) and Lindsey Stewart's (bottom left) kusamonos.
The display was designed by RMBS member Samantha Holm, who also created all of the wooden display boards using the Japanese wood burning technique called Yakisugi. There will be an educational blog post in the future for PPS members about how to use the Yakisugi method to preserve wood.
The Purple Pot Society
Two of the featured kusamonos were created the year before by the Denver Branch of the Purple Pot Society during a workshop with Young Choe. The "Juniper Fence Post" Kusamono (shown below) was created on an old fence post Linda Paul collected from her father's property. Workshop participants created the kusamono using montane plants collected by Linda and other native plants purchased from a nursery.
"The Bog" Kusamono (shown below) was put together by Samantha Holm and Linda Paul with assistance by Young Choe during the workshop. It was planted in a 20 inch diameter ceramic tray without drain holes for the water-loving plants. The decaying stump in the center was collected by Linda.
Samantha Holm
This modern kusamono is comprised of three kokedama moss-balls and three spherical terrariums hanging from fishing wire from a four foot tall copper stand. It contains cold hardy perennials.
Lindsey Stewart
Linda Paul
Christina Carfora Seaman
Brie Stahnke
Kora Dalager - Denver Botanic Gardens
In 2021 Kora Dalager was hired by The Rocky Mountain Bonsai Society to perform several kusamono demonstrations during the club's annual show. The kusamono shown below was one of two that was created during a demonstration and donated to the Denver Botanic Gardens.
Mike Britten
Bart Hall
David Fletcher
Graham Stahnke
