by Rocky Mountain Bonsai Society member Stefan Rausch

Also known as Shari Style in the U.S. This style portrays a tree with most of its trunk bare of bark; at least one strip of live bark must connect the leaves and living branches to the root system to transport water and nutrients. The bared trunk areas give a strong impression of age regardless of the tree’s conformation, so driftwood bonsai often fall outside of the conventional styles in shape and foliage. In nature, trees in the sharimiki style are created by disease, physical damage to the trunk, weathering, and age. Pines, Junipers, and Conifers work best for this style.

Advantages of Sharimiki

Are that it is not common to see. This allows us to not be tempted to create an image that we commonly create when we style our bonsai. The negative space created within the tree with the play of deadwood and live vein is a very appealing image to look at. It gives the artist a chance to work on deadwood techniques and expand the imagination. We can build a back-story for the tree and its history even if it is one of fiction in our head; it allows us to really impart the artists’ journey along with the trees.

Disadvantage of Sharimiki

Is the ability to get or find material that is already well suited for this style. This is one major factor why we don’t see this style very often, it will take many years to create a tree from stock that forms into this image nicely, it will take lots of patience working the live vein back from the shari and deadwood. If we are lucky enough to get a collected specimen it will take an artist eye to match the foliage with the large amounts of deadwood, we don’t want the foliage to look heavy and overgrown.

In most cases broad leaf or fruiting trees are not applicable to shari style, they will either rot the deadwood or re-grow live tissue over the old wood. Olive trees might be the one exception as they can have deadwood.

• Japanese White Pine (Pinus parviflora)
• Black Pine (Pinus thunbergii)
• Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa)
• Juniper (Juniperus spp)
• Spruce (Picea spp)
• Olive (Olea spp)
• Conifers

 

Stefan Rausch was born and raised in Colorado, growing up hiking, hunting and fishing dominated most of his time ingraining his love for the Rocky Mountains. He started working with all types of plant material at an early age working his way up to a full time position in horticulture at one of Colorado’s most premier country clubs. His brother saw this interest and soon invited him to a local bonsai show, this is where for the first time he saw the possibilities and artistic expression of bonsai and what could be done with local Rocky Mountain material. He is truly passionate about the progression and future of Bonsai as an art form, especially here in the United States. Stefan has been lucky enough to learn first hand from some of the best Yamadori collectors and Bonsai Artists such as Larry Jackel and Harold Sasaki.