Sad to report that bonsai artist and a leader of the American bonsai
community, Marion Gyllenswan of Nanuet, New York passed away this afternoon.

Marion was very active in promoting the National Bonsai and Penjing
Museum at the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC. She was a past
president, president emeritus and very hard loyal worker for bonsai
museum. She was also very active and an organizer, officer and director
of both the Bonsai Society of Greater New York and the American Bonsai
Society.

Here bonsai demonstrations were wonderful as were her trees. She will
surely be missed by everyone who was fortunate to have known her.

William N. Valavanis

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Thanks for sharing news of Marion Gyllenswan, Bill.

Marion was devoted to encouraging enthusiasm from others. She cultivated
love of nature and fulness of experience. Her personal warmth and natural
inclination to focus upon the needs of others made her a GREAT advocate for
bonsai.

Chris... C. Cochrane, , Richmond VA USA

----- Original Message -----
From: "William N. Valavanis"
To:
Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 8:46 PM
Subject: [IBC] MARION GYLLENSWAN PASSING


I'm sad to report that bonsai artist and a leader of the American bonsai
community, Marion Gyllenswan of Nanuet, New York passed away this
afternoon.

Marion was very active in promoting the National Bonsai and Penjing
Museum at the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC. She was a past
president, president emeritus and very hard loyal worker for bonsai
museum. She was also very active and an organizer, officer and director
of both the Bonsai Society of Greater New York and the American Bonsai
Society.

Here bonsai demonstrations were wonderful as were her trees. She will
surely be missed by everyone who was fortunate to have known her.

William N. Valavanis


************************************************** **************************
****
++++Sponsored, in part, by Evergreen Gardenworks++++

************************************************** **************************
****
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++

************************************************** ******************************
++++Sponsored, in part, by Evergreen Gardenworks++++
************************************************** ******************************
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++

I did not know Marion very well, but she leaves a big void in her passing.
She subscribed to my newsletter for years. The first time I ever saw her was as a
black robed assistant to Yuji Yoshimura as he performed a very theatrical
lecture/demonstration on the creation of a three part saikei planting in Atlanta for
the BCI 1981 convention. It was my first time to attend a bonsai convention, and it
changed my world. Yuji created in his demonstration a three part saikei representing
the seacoast, piedmont and mountain topography found in Georgia's geography. It was
literally a dramatic departure from the usual lecture/demo. Even though saikei are
not long term projects like bonsai, a lot was learned and it was a great
experience. Marion and another assistant were dressed in black robes like acolytes
and performed silently as Mr. Yoshimura made his presentation with much attention to
staging and lighting. It was a creativity in presentation rarely seen in bonsai
circles.
I believe Marion was the first president of the National Bonsai Foundation
and, as Chris and Bill mention, leaves a major legacy in bonsai of which most of us
would be largely unaware.
Coincidentally, I learned that my first bonsai mentor, my best friend and
the person who introduced me to bonsai back in 1971, died yesterday morning. Ray
Storts, founder of the Tulsa Bonsai Society, was 58 years old and had been disabled
for several years due to a plethora of medical problems (emphysema, CHF, diabetes,
etc.) which had forced him to give up bonsai. I will miss him a lot, but I'm glad
he is no longer suffering.
Alan Walker, Lake Charles, LA, USA
http://LCBSBonsai.org http://bonsai-bci.com
================================
Chris Cochrane wrote:
Thanks for sharing news of Marion Gyllenswan, Bill.
Marion was devoted to encouraging enthusiasm from others. She cultivated
love of nature and fulness of experience. Her personal warmth and natural
inclination to focus upon the needs of others made her a GREAT advocate for bonsai.
Chris... C. Cochrane, , Richmond VA USA
----- Original Message -----
From: "William N. Valavanis"
I'm sad to report that bonsai artist and a leader of the American bonsai
community, Marion Gyllenswan of Nanuet, New York passed away this
afternoon.
Marion was very active in promoting the National Bonsai and Penjing
Museum at the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC. She was a past
president, president emeritus and very hard loyal worker for bonsai
museum. She was also very active and an organizer, officer and director
of both the Bonsai Society of Greater New York and the American Bonsai
Society.
Her bonsai demonstrations were wonderful as were her trees. She will surely
be missed by everyone who was fortunate to have known her.
William N. Valavanis

************************************************** ******************************
++++Sponsored, in part, by Evergreen Gardenworks++++
************************************************** ******************************
-- The IBC HOME PAGE & FAQ: http://www.internetbonsaiclub.org/ --
+++++ Questions? Help? e-mail +++++