Mark Arpag to Lead Two Hands-On Bonsai Workshops, Demo in Knightdale

Mark Arpag, the award winning Bonsai Artist living in Rochester, New York, led two hands-on workshops hosted by the Triangle Bonsai Society at the Raleigh Police Club, 3500 Leonard Rd, Knightdale. Triangle Bonsai Society advertised the events as "two workshops and a demo/lecture on March 7-8, 2026," with the hands-on sessions scheduled on Saturday, March 7.

The morning session ran from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and used Koyohime Japanese Maples supplied by the club. Trianglebonsai described the session, writing, "Mark will teach a workshop on Saturday March 7th, from 9am-12pm, using Koyohime Japanese Maples. The trees are provided and should let you leave the workshop with a bonsai that you will be proud of." Ten participant spots were available for that session at a cost of $175; participants were instructed to bring tools and soil for repotting while TBS provided wire and a training pot.

A second, afternoon BYOT workshop ran from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., limited to eight participants at a $50 fee. The Trianglebonsai listing explained, "The second workshop on Saturday March 7th will be a BYOT workshop, from 1-4pm. Eight spots are available at a cost of $50. Please bring 1-2 bonsai you would like help with, and your tools."

Registration and payment were handled through the club's workshop signup page, which stated, "TBS accepts PayPal as the only form of payment. No PayPal account is necessary; PayPal allows you to pay with a credit card using the same link." The signup page also laid out a lottery process if requests exceeded available slots: "Lottery Process if more than the slots available are requested by the date indicated: People are numbered by the time they signup, random numbers are generated using and these are used to select individuals who will not get a requested slot in a work shop. Money paid will be refunded to these people." The page reminded users to "scroll all the way to the bottom of the page to see all workshops."

Arpag's visit to the Triangle followed a long record of exhibition and teaching credits. Trianglebonsai noted, "Mark has been a long time student and friend of Bill Valavanis. He has displayed his bonsai at several US National Bonsai Exhibitions and Winter Silhouette shows." Nature's Way Nursery expanded on that background: "Mark Arpag is an award winning Bonsai Artist living in Rochester, New York," listing awards and exhibits including "2010 2nd US National Exhibition, 2011 BCI Award Native Exhibition, 2014 4th US National Exhibition, 2018 6th US National Exhibition, 2 Awards @ 2019 2nd US National Shohin Exhibition, 2022 ABS Creative Display Shohin, 2023 8th US National Exhibition."

Clubs that have hosted Arpag before described his teaching rhythm of hands-on styling and a longer demonstration. Mohawk Hudson Bonsai Society reported that MHBS "welcomed Mark Arpag to the Capital Region for the weekend of July 29th and 30th," and that "On Saturday, some members brought their own material for one-on-one workshop time with Mark in styling and design." MHBS recounted that "Mr. Arpag worked diligently for several hours while giving tips, highlighting some other trees (including several member cedars), and having a great time with all," and that the demo produced "an amazing clump juniper with the feeling of a meandering path through an island forest," a tree later won in a raffle by David Hodgetts. MHBS thanked Kris Springer/Black Dodge Bonsai for donating the demo tree and DJH Bonsai LLC for hosting.

Trianglebonsai listed a demo/lecture as part of the March 7-8 activity but provided explicit times only for the two Saturday workshops; the demo/lecture timing and whether it took place on March 7 or March 8 was not specified on the club's signup excerpt. The club's PayPal-only payment instruction and the stated lottery-and-refund process framed registration logistics for attendees, and Arpag's return to the Triangle continued a pattern of regional club weekends that combine one-on-one workshop time with public demonstrations and exhibitor ties.