Well, spring sprang with a vengeance this year! I don’t know about you guys, but I managed to finish everything I had planned for the season, from repotting, to grafting, to styling and on down the line….well, almost everything…I’ve been remiss in updating the blog with all the hubbub of spring, so now that everything is done, I’ll be playing catch up and posting twice weekly for a while. First up, Hayashi Mokuu!

Hayashi Mokuu, whose real name was Hayashi Yoshikazu was born in Kyoto in 1901, and passed away in 1999. He studied pottery under his father, who worked at one of the large Kyo Yaki kilns. At the age of 20, he took a position with the Imperial Household Kiln, to acquire skills with porcelain. After this, he studied with famous Kyoto craftsman Shimizu, where he began creating bonsai pottery.

Mokuu was close friends with Heian Tofukuji, and…