caughymies

Frederick H. Mies
Biographical Information: Born and educated in New York City. Moved to Montgomery County, MD in 1961 after completion of graduate school. Employed as theoretical molecular physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), originally National Bureau of Standards (NBS), from 1991-1997. Retired 1997, and currently employed as consultant in Atomic Physics Division at NIST. Developed interest in bonsai and joined Brookside Gardens Bonsai Club and Potomac Bonsai Association (PBA) in 1974. Studied and trained extensively with Cliff Pottberg. Served as Educational VP of PBA 1981-1985, and as President of PBA 1987 and 1988.

Artist's Statement: My primary interest is in collecting indigenous trees for creation of bonsai representative of USA. (i.e., American beech, American hornbeam, mountain laurel, red maple, high bush blueberry, Virginia pine, etc.). Collecting includes trees and shrubs 'rescued' from private gardens and abandoned landscapes. I primarily train my bonsai using the Chinese clip-and-grow technique and especially enjoy introducing whimsical aspects into the design of the trees. I feel this is more representative of the effects achieved in nature. The goal is to avoid some of the stilted designs that are often achieved by dogmatically following the prescribed rules that have been developed for styling bonsai. This opportunity to dynamically collaborate with a ceramist to achieve an overall design adds an extra element of whimsy that I find very exciting. I believe that this more unfettered approach to bonsai is more natural and certainly more conducive to achieving a truly western style of bonsai..

Patrick Timothy Caughy + Frederick H. Mies
Patrick Timothy Caughy Bio Statement: Patrick Timothy Caughy is a ceramic artist and art educator. A member of the Baltimore Clayworks, he has recently completed a residency at the Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington. A prevailing theme of his work and teaching is the power and potential of clay to connect and transform. He has co-led a discussion group on 'Clay as a Tool for Healing' at the two latest meetings of the National Council on Education in the Ceramic Arts. Artist Statement: For me, encountering the living bonsai tree which I had selected was formative of my entire approach to the vessel making. Even the juniper's style, "Literati" prompted my attention to the lyric, elegant and understated. I coiled, paddled and impressed stones and wood into a heartily grogged clay body to imbue it with the textures of stone. I shaped the pot along a horizontal axis in complement to the tree's dynamic vertical sweep. I present the completed ensemble as an expression of companionship and harmony with the living tree.
		Click here for a detail of the image above. Untitled stoneware clay with underglaze, oxides, stains and cone 6 glaze; 14l x10w x 4h 2002 Bonsai Tree Information: Latin Name: Juniperus japonica, var. procumbens Common Name: Japanese Garden Juniper Style: Slant Estimated Age: 25 years Time in Training: 17 years Source of Plant: Bonsai nursery (Marian Borchers)
		Frederick H. Mies Biographical Information: Born and educated in New York City. Moved to Montgomery County, MD in 1961 after completion of graduate school. Employed as theoretical molecular physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), originally National Bureau of Standards (NBS), from 1991-1997. Retired 1997, and currently employed as consultant in Atomic Physics Division at NIST. Developed interest in bonsai and joined Brookside Gardens Bonsai Club and Potomac Bonsai Association (PBA) in 1974. Studied and trained extensively with Cliff Pottberg. Served as Educational VP of PBA 1981-1985, and as President of PBA 1987 and 1988. Artist's Statement: My primary interest is in collecting indigenous trees for creation of bonsai representative of USA. (i.e., American beech, American hornbeam, mountain laurel, red maple, high bush blueberry, Virginia pine, etc.). Collecting includes trees and shrubs 'rescued' from private gardens and abandoned landscapes. I primarily train my bonsai using the Chinese clip-and-grow technique and especially enjoy introducing whimsical aspects into the design of the trees. I feel this is more representative of the effects achieved in nature. The goal is to avoid some of the stilted designs that are often achieved by dogmatically following the prescribed rules that have been developed for styling bonsai. This opportunity to dynamically collaborate with a ceramist to achieve an overall design adds an extra element of whimsy that I find very exciting. I believe that this more unfettered approach to bonsai is more natural and certainly more conducive to achieving a truly western style of bonsai..