In this beginner’s bonsai workshop with Jim Keith, 2025 Prairie State Bonsai Society guest artist, students will learn to style and wire their own dawn redwood bonsai tree to take home.
Metaseqoia glyptostroboides, commonly known as dawn redwood, was thought to be extinct until specimens were discovered at a temple in China in the early 20th century. These trees have beautiful featherlike foliage and a formal, upright style that is visually powerful and majestic. Dawn redwood thrives outdoors, in temperatures above 20 degrees Fahrenheit with protection.
This bonsai workshop will focus on initial styling and wiring of the dawn redwood tree. Care instructions will be included. All skill levels are welcome.
This program meets in person at the Arboretum and is presented by the Prairie State Bonsai Society in conjunction with The Morton Arboretum’s Destination Asia Festival and Bonsai Show on Saturday, August 2, and Sunday, August 3.
Instructor: Jim Keith
Age: 16 and older
Course number: V119
Instructor
Jim Keith, 2025 Prairie State Bonsai Society guest artist
Jim Keith is the Prairie State Bonsai Society’s guest artist and judge of the 2025 Bonsai Show, hosted as part of The Morton Arboretum’s Destination Asia Festival. He writes of his involvement with bonsai, as follows:
“My bonsai journey began thirty years ago when a neighbor moved into the house behind mine. I saw he had bonsai trees, and I asked him if he could teach me. He agreed, and together we would work on trees in his backyard while having a beer, telling stories and smoking an occasional cigar. Those were great memories. The lessons I learned from my friend led to a passion for the art of bonsai that I have been practicing ever since.”
“The art of bonsai provides me with a meditative connection to nature. It’s the contemplation of the design and future I see for the tree before I begin the styling process. Developing a vision for it as a piece of living art is what excites me as a bonsai artist.”
“I apply the principles of artistic design. Carefully considering concepts such as line, form, shape, color, texture, movement, positive and negative space, and asymmetry, with an eye towards creating a harmonious and captivating piece of art.”
“My goal is to evoke an emotional response in viewers of my art. I want them to be drawn into my art with a sense of wonder and imagination. To recognize the story that the tree would be telling of its journey if it were a tree growing in the wild. To experience the beauty, ephemeral and transitory nature of life that is the art of bonsai.”
What to Know
Bonsai materials and supplies are included in the workshop cost.
Students are asked to bring in the tools they have on hand. Extra tools will be provided by Prairie State Bonsai Society.
Material selection is by lottery drawing.
Program Schedule
Sunday, August 3, 2025, 9:00 a.m. to noon
Thornhill Education Center (parking lot P-21), West Side
