Basically none of these trees are finished, or rather, show ready. For some of the prices there I’d want a show ready tree. They’re big, sure, but blimey.
Plus, the ages of the trees are complete guesses, too many of the same age. Has any dating been done? I mean it’s fine to speculate for a personal collection etc, but when selling you have a duty to be accurate in your descriptions.
Also, I disagree about it being good for or being a sign of healthy American bonsai market. What it shows is that there are some (33) people with more money than sense and 33 sales is not a true reflection of any marketplace really.
This guy irritates me to be honest. He seems like a snake oil salesman to me. He could sell rocking horse poo if he was so inclined, but he sells bonsai instead for super inflated prices. Fair play if people do want to spend their money, fair play for the business plan of the yearly sale, but pricing bonsai out of the reach of 99% of people is less encouraging for average joe, more just shows people what most of them can’t ever reach.
Bit of a rant but it’s just my 2p
Not defending Ryan, but just some perspective. He charges what he charges. He's found a market. The fact ALL of those trees were sold within a few minutes to an hour shows there is a ready demand--and yeah, those trees are as old as advertised. May not be the specific age he's put down, but they're probably pretty close. Old trees like those are all over the Western U.S. As for "regular joes" like you and me, sales and prices like these can mean more old collected (and less expensive) trees finding their way to our market (at least here in the U.S.).
That has happened in the last decade or so here. Back in the 90's, Japanese imports were the pinnacle of bonsai commanding eye-watering prices. People paid premiums for imports. Those trees are still around, but the range of native species, including really old trees, has increased exponentially since then. Sales like these have spurred others to collect and sell for much lower prices.
As for the sales trees, there is "finished" and "show finished." None of those trees are ready for show, but some are pretty close. If you've ever worked with such old material you'd know that just getting them into containers alive in the years post-collection can be quite a job in itself. All of those trees have history and/or were collected by people who knew where to look and how to get them out. Not to mention getting them settled in a pot. He works with one of the premier collectors in the U.S. for big, old native conifers. Access to that collector's stock isn't easy to get. This is kind of irritating, but it is what it is. There are other collectors selling great stock for a lot less.
I don't think Ryan is a snakeoil salesman. Yes, he sets the taste and market, just like in-demand "real" artists do. Ever priced a Banksy? It can be galling sometimes, but I got over it. I'm not his audience, can't really keep a tree like that in my area and don't have that kind of cash to throw around. I've never purchased a tree from Ryan, but have seen him work at workshops. He knows trees and how to get them healthy and manage them, particularly old native conifer species. He has developed specific techniques for those native species and figured out how to adapt bonsai techniques to them--he didn't just apply rote Japanese practices.
One would think a lot of the people buying these trees live near Ryan or can make the effort to go see him. I wonder how many of those trees will stay at Mirai "in residence" with owners traveling to work on them. That's kind of how big time Japanese bonsai buyers operate--buy an expensive tree, have the nursery care for it...
