Pictured above is the plaque recording and celebrating all of the stamps and signatures used by Andrew Pearson of Stone Monkey Ceramics throughout his career. Currently the only such plaque in existence, Andrew kindly produced this for the EBPC to be used for pot displays and it can be seen above in the company of plaques by Japanese greats - Gyouzan, Bigei, Reiho, and Kakuzan. 

Revered across the bonsai world, Stone Monkey Ceramics comprehends and is conscious of the the tree-pot marriage and produces excellent designs, in a variety of forms and finishes that suit trees impeccably. As the first Westener to have been invited to participate in the world's leading bonsai exhibition and small pot contest, 'The Gafu-ten', (which he won first place in the unglazed section!!) we thought it fitting to have such a plaque made by Andrew - the first by a European potter as far as we know. 

The EBPC are proud to support such artists, and we are very excited to be able to offer a range of 20 exclusive pots by this leading artist - COMING VERY SOON! 

Thank you for supporting the EBPC and great European bonsai ceramics. 

The bonsai workshop was busy again, and some great trees were worked on over the two days. A variety of games and raffles were also arranged, with many local businesses around Ashford kindly donating raffle prizes. In addition to raising money for a great cause, a fun weekend was had by all. 

The EBPC is very excited to offer for sale the 'Raku Series' from Stone Monkey Ceramics. 
Dual stamped with the EBPC stamp together with the Stone Monkey Ceramics mark, these superb pots come in a wonderful variety of forms and colours!

Raku is a Japanese technique of firing ceramics such as 'chawan' tea bowls. Rather than placing the ceramics in a cool kiln, raku ware goes straight into a hot kiln for a time, and then are cooled rapidly. Raku pots are cooked to around 1000 degrees centigrade, which is lower than stoneware, and as such they do not reach the heat required to 'vitrify' or make them 'frost proof'. They are however superb, useable bonsai or accent pots and the flames and extreme changes in temperature offer some quite stunning results. These were fired in a kiln belonging to a  friend of Andrew, as his new studio and kilns are being built. 

Please see the online store for the selection. 

A little about the pots and the potter's inspirations for them...

Thor Holvila - 'Temple'. ​

​ ... After a few days we journeyed up into the mountains and the log cabin. The inspiration for this pot with its primitive carvings is inspired by the old buildings standing on the slopes of the Älvdalen valley.

​The atmosphere in Thor's studio in Goteborg was full of inspiration from the very beginning. My muse made me remember that I've made a few simple pots from one single piece of clay, but still having everything that a bonsai pot needs - walls, bottom with drainage/and wire holes and feet. This time I just had to aim a bit higher again 😉
"One piece of clay" was a redline bounding most of the pots I made during the wonderful Triskele meeting vol.1 - Sweden 😀

The launch of the sale will be at Bonsai Europa on 7th October, however they will also be available online on that day also. If you are interested in purchasing one of these unique pieces of history, please email Alex at the EBPC to be added to the list. We will contact you again before the pots are sold. 

To read about the first set produced last year, please click here.