East and West: Japa-nese Ceramics fromthe Kozan Studio. Inaddition, Ked has lec-ture d on a w iderange of Asian topics,including the historyof the Japanesek imono, kabukia c tor p r i n t s a n dMeiji period decora-tive arts.

In her new positionat the Museum, shewill curate the col-lections of viewingstones and scholarsrocks and the scroll,ceramic, and bookcollections. She willalso have oversight of

exhibits in the Mary MroseInternational Pavilion and willassist with the care of the tree col-lections.

Ked has studied and taught theart of bonsai in the context ofJapanese art. She has bonsai at herhome in Reston, Virginia, whichshe shares with her husband, John,and their nine-year-old twins, Noraand Paul.

NBFBULLETIN

Spring 2006

News for friends, contributors

and members ofThe National Bonsai

Foundation

Volume XVII, Number 1

Kathleen Emerson-DellAppointed Assistant Curator

Kathleen Emerson-Dell (“Ked”) is the newAssistant Curator forthe Ar t and BookCol lect ions at theNational Bonsai &Penjing Museum.

Ked has a rich back-ground in Japanese artsand culture. After com-pleting her Bachelor ofArts degree in ArtHistory at the Univer-sity of Maryland, sheattended the Universityof Michigan at AnnArbor and received aMa s te r s D e g re e i nJapanese Art Historyand completed doctoralcourse work in Asian Art History.She was the recipient of a FreerFellowship at the Freer Gallery ofArt in Washington, D.C. for thestudy of Japanese ceramics, as wellas a Japan Foundation Fellowshipfor advanced Japanese languagestudies in Tokyo, Japan.

Before coming to the Museum,she worked for 16 years at theWalters Art Museum in Baltimore,Maryland. As the Japanese special-ist at that institution, she cata-

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Kathleen Emerson-Dell, is the Assistant Curator for Art and Book Collections.

logued the Japanese collections ofpaintings, prints, sculpture, metal-work, swords, lacquers, ceramics,armor and netsuke. She was alsoresponsible for the installation ofthe Walters’ collection of Asian artin the Hackerman House, an1850’s property annexed to thatmuseum.

She has published articles onJapanese tapestry and potterymaking, and is the author of theWalters exhibit catalogue, Bridging �

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In the springof 2005, NBF andallied bonsai orga-nizations in theUnited States weretotally absorbedin the final prep-arations for the 5th World BonsaiConvention herein Wash ington

D.C. Indeed, for four long years we hadbeen preparing for that four-day event.Suddenly it was upon us, and we werecaught up in the whirl of convention activi-ties. Then, just as quickly, it was behind usand part of bonsai history.

Just after the convention ended, our atten-tion turned to assembling and producing the5th WBC Commemorative Album. This gaveus an opportunity to really see what had beenaccomplished and how this event, preceededby those in Tokyo, Orlando, Seoul and Munich,and to be succeeded by the next one in SanJuan in 2009, is a key building block of theworld bonsai community.

For all of those who worked so hard on the5th WBC, that exhaustive effort has beenreplaced by a quiet pride that, through thecooperative goodwill and dedication of somany, we did bring the bonsai world togetherfor a brief but glorious moment. For theNational Bonsai & Penjing Museum, the 5thWBC allowed the world bonsai community tosee first-hand that this is the finest museum ofits kind in the world.

Last July, just when we thought things weregetting back to normal, Jack Sustic announcedhis retirement as Curator of the Museum. Hehad been Curator for three years, and alsoserved as the good and able Co-Chair, alongwith Glenn Reusch, of the 5th WBC. We thankJack for his many contributions.

By the end of 2005, the Museum had anew Curator: Jim Hughes, who trained andworked with Bob Drechsler, Warren Hill andJack Sustic. Jim brings to the task many skillsimparted to him by his distinguished prede-cessors, and his artistry and horticulturalknowledge will bring out the very best in theMuseum’s collections, as the trees continue to mature and change over time. We alsowelcomed Kathleen Emerson-Dell to theMuseum as a new Assistant Curator. Shebrings many talents that will transform theart and book collections of the Museum.

In February of this year, we were deeplysaddened by the death of our dear friend andcolleague Jack Billet. Jack brought to the NBFboard both wisdom and a sense of humor; inhis work and teaching, he embodied the nobleideal of promoting friendship and goodwill inthe world through bonsai. We will miss hispresence at the NBF board table.

As we now enter the summer of 2006—the30th anniversary of the Museum—we lookforward to the further development of aninstitution that brings beauty into the lives ofall who visit it.

President’s Letter

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

HONORARY MEMBERSH. Marc CatheyJohn L. Creech

Harry HiraoSaburo Kato (Japan)

Barbara Hall MarshallHiroshi Takeyama (Japan)

Yun-hua Hu (China)

EXECUTIVE DIRECTORJohann F. Klodzen

OFFICERSFelix B. Laughlin, DC

PresidentMarybel Balendonck, CA

Vice PresidentChristopher M. Cochrane, VA

SecretaryCésar Portocarrero, MD

Treasurer

MEMBERSJulian Adams, VAKarin Albert, GA

Vaughn L. Banting, LAMary Bloomer, AZJames Brant, PA

Roger S. Case, Jr., NMDennis S. Donald, PARobert Drechsler, MD

C. F. Kwok, VAJanet E. Lanman, MDCheryl Manning, CABrussel Martin, MSCarl Morimoto, CA

Mary Ann E. Orlando, DCLarry Ragle, CA

Glenn Reusch, VAF. Chase Rosade, PADeborah Rose, MDWayne Schoech, VTThomas Scott, TN

Jerald P. Stowell, NJJack Sustic, MI

Edward Trout, FLTed T.Tsukiyama, HI

William N. Valavanis, NYJack W. Wells, DC

Chris J.Yeapanis, VA

EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSPresident

American Bonsai SocietyPresident

Bonsai Clubs InternationalPresident

Potomac Bonsai Association

ADVISORSThomas S. Elias

Director, U.S. National ArboretumCarole Bordelon

Supervisory HorticulturistJames J. Hughes

CuratorKathleen Emerson-Dell

Assistant Curator

The bonsai community lost a wonderfulfriend in February with the death of JackBillet, age 71, of Wilmington, Delaware.

Jack was an esteemed member of theNBF Board of Directors for many yearsand, along with Doris Froning, con-ceived the concept of the NBF publi-cation, John Naka’s Sketchbook (2005).In 2004 the National Bonsai & PenjingMuseum hosted an exhibit of shohinand mame bonsai from the collectionsof Jack and Dorie.

He was a well recognized and belovedbonsai teacher who generously impartedhis appreciation and understanding ofbonsai to students all over the EastCoast. NBF was designated as a bene-ficiary of memorial donations in hishonor, and we have received numerousletters of warm tribute from those whoknew him.

He is survived by his wife Barbara, ason Bradford and a grandson Matthew.

As Vaughn Banting said: “Jack alwayshad a mischievous twinkle in his eye and italways felt good to be around him. I knowso many of us in the bonsai communitywill miss him greatly.” We will indeed.

Jack Billet

Jack Billet with his shohin at the 2004 Exhibit in the Museum.

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Besides the fact that March 21 is mybirthday, the first day of spring is alwaysone of my favorite days, especially work-ing here at the Museum. The trees arecoming out of winter storage and it isthe season for repotting. The wireapplied last fall is coming off many ofthe branches and the expectation ofanother year of growth is in the air.

This spring was particularly rewardingsince we released two Pinus parviflorathat had been in quarantine since theirarrival from Japan in 2004. The largesttree is a slant style and measures 12 inchesin diameter at the base. The other, Pinusparviflora ‘Zuisyo’ has extremely smallneedles and is a formal upright. Thesetwo bonsai are gifts from Mr. and Mrs.Daizo Iwasaki and are priceless additionsto our Japanese Collection.

For the past ten months, with thedeparture of Jack Sustic and MichaelJames, we have been sorely understaffed in the Museum. We are fortunatethough that Christy Hilberg, theMuseum gardener, took on many addedresponsibilities, and with the help ofCarole Bordelon and others from theGardens Unit, we were able to safelyshepherd the Tree Collections throughthe winter months.

Then, with the coming of spring, wewere very pleased to welcome KathleenEmerson-Dell to our Museum team.

Curator’s CornerBy James Hughes

Kathleen, or Ked as she prefers to becalled, is a very talented museum spe-cialist who comes to us after many yearsat the Walters Art Museum inBaltimore. With this museum back-ground, combined with fluency in theJapanese language and graduate studiesin Japanese Art History, we have highexpectations for her work with the artand book collections.

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Jim Hughes teaching in the Melba Tucker Arbor at one of the bonsai demonstration this spring.

By the time this publication reachesyou, interviews for the second assistantcurator, who will help care for the trees,should be finished. Then our workforce will be complete. So how can I nothelp but be optimistic and energetic? Itis summer, the trees are out of hiberna-tion, help abounds, and the Museum isfilled with visitors.

NBF Board of Directors❖ Julian Adams, Carl Morimoto and

Wayne Schoech were elected to theNBF Board of Directors for three-year terms effective May 19th.

Julian Adams, of Lynchburg, Virginia,has been involved in bonsai since1971 and is the proprietor of AdamsBonsai. He has written many articleson bonsai for local and nationalpublications, as well as lecturing andconducting workshops and demon-strations.

Wayne Schoech, of Stone LanternDiscoveries in Passumpsic Vermont,

is the publisher of the periodicalBonsai Today. He has studied bonsaisince 1978 and was a partner withHitoshi Kanegae at New EnglandBonsai Gardens.

Carl Morimoto lives in San Jose,California and became involved inbonsai in 1989. With fluency in theJapanese language, he translatesJapanese publications on bonsaiinto English, making them availableto an American audience. He hasbeen the editor of Golden Statementssince 2000.

❖ Cynthia Helms and Helen Souderconcluded their terms on the boardon May 19th. While on the board,Mrs. Helms was extraordinarilyinstrumental in helping NBF to pre-pare and host the 5th World BonsaiConvention. She also facilitatedcooperation between the Sackler/Freer Gallery of Art and the NationalBonsai & Penjing Museum. Mrs.Souder was an active board memberfor numerous terms and gave gener-ously in many different ways to sup-port the Museum throughout herlong and distinguished bonsai career.

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Please note that if a small “x”appears on your mailing label forthis issue of the NBF Bulletin youhave not yet renewed your mem-bership for 2006. Please do so nowso that you will continue to receivefuture issues. An envelope isenclosed for your convenience.

Categories of Support

Contributor $50 to $99

Sponsor $100 to $249

Patron $250 to $999

Benefactor Over $1,000

Museum Notes❖ Carole Bordelon, who was the

Museum Gardener from 1990–1994,and Asian Collections Curator from1997 until 2005, has been appointedthe Supervisory Horticulturist for theNational Bonsai & Penjing Museum.

❖ This springtwo impos-ing bambooshoot stoneswere installedin a gardenbed adjacentto the YujiYo s h i m u r aCenter. Thestones weredonated byD a n i e l B u ia n d N h a n

Truong of the Potomac ViewingStone Group.

❖ On February 4th Rob Naka, grand-son of John Y. Naka, and his wife Loriand daughter Kyrsten Naka, visitedthe National Bonsai & PenjingMuseum. Pictured here with Goshinand his wife and daughter, Robrecalled Easter Egg Hunts when hisgrandfather would hide the eggs inthis famous forest planting.

Volunteer of MeritBy Christina Hilberg

At the 2005 Annual Museum Holidayparty the staff of the Bonsai & PenjingMuseum gave the Volunteer of MeritAward* to Richard Winchester whoassists the staff in maintaining the gar-dens of the Museum complex.

When I first came to the Museum asthe Gardener, I did not have very muchexperience working in Japanese gardens.So Richard took the time to teach me thefiner points of Japanese gardening tech-niques, especially pruning. He alsoinstructed me about the garden’s past andhow to plan for the future as the plantsgrow. As gardeners have changed over theyears, Richard remains as a stable pres-ence in the garden and his work providescontinuity in the art of styling the plants.

Richard routinely prunes the maples,does “gentle shearing” on the azaleas andhollies in the Kato Family JapaneseStroll Garden, helps to candle the pinesin the spring, as well as planting andweeding. In addition, he has worked onmany special projects, including rebuild-ing the deteriorating stone work in theJapanese Stroll Garden and designingand constructing the bamboo fencing forthe walkway in the Cryptomeria Walk.

Not only is Richard a dependable andan industrious volunteer, but it is a plea-

sure for me to work with him. Hiscapacity for taking on apparently end-less tasks is amazing to me. He can handsaw for hours, shovel wet mud for whatseems like days, and still have a smileand ask: “What’s next?”

Although he is “retired”, Richard is farfrom inactive. He does aesthetic pruningfor clients, and has been apparentlyrebuilding his home while caring for hisown beautiful Japanese garden. I am justgrateful that he makes time to come tothe Museum and work with us.

We are very fortunate to have Richardas a volunteer and a friend of the Museum.

*Over the last few years at the Annual HolidayParty, the Museum staff has given special recog-nition to a volunteer. Volunteers who have previ-ously been recognized are: Janet Lanman (2002),David Garvin (2003) and John Cardon (2004).

Bamboo Shoot Stones.

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Richard Winchester pruning in the JapaneseStroll Garden.

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Naka family with Goshen.

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Sakura Matsuri

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❖ The annual Sakura Matsuri ofWashington D.C. was celebrated over atwo-week span in March and earlyApril. Museum Curator, James Hughesand NBF Executive Director, JohannKlodzen, represented the Museum atthe opening-day event for families onMarch 25th at the National BuildingMuseum. Museum volunteers JackCardon, Jim Rieden and Arboretumstaff members Keenan Amundsen,Susan Burgess,Rose Ann Davis,RobinEverly, Hongmei Ma and Jeffrey Rexparticipated in the Street Fair thatclosed the festival on April 8th.

❖ A Silent Auction of trees and potsthat were not in the accessioned col-lections was held in the Courtyard ofthe Museum on June 3rd. The eventgarnered almost $6,000 in sales, andthe funds will be used for Museum-related expenses.