Home

About us

 
The Italian Association of Suiseki Lovers was founded  on April 20th 1997 in Grosseto and founders were the following members : Mr. Attinà, Mr. Carratelli, Mr. Di Venere, Mr. Enny, Mr. Franceschetti, Mr.Galli,  Mrs.Manuti, Mrs.Padrini, Mrs.Queirolo, Mrs.Santiano, Mr. Schenone A., Mrs.Schenone M..
We were a group of friends, scattered all over Italy, keen of the Suiseki Art, feeling from time the need to join ouselves in an Association, in order to set up an Italian Suiseki reality which was a point of reference for all those people who, as we, fond of this Art, feel themselves remote or not much understood in their own territorial reality; a meeting point which was useful to those of us looking for confrontation or the confort of opinions or suggestions for our ideas; in few words : for growing together.
In 1998 the registered office of the Association was established in Castelfranco Emilia ( Modena ) in Via Solimei n.21, c/o The Bonsai Association of Castelfranco Emilia “ABC del Bonsai”, where the first Annual Exhibition-Congress was organized.
In that occasion Mr.Vito Di Venere, already appointed President by founders for the initial costitutive period , was confirmed in the position of President in the election for the period 1999-2001 and again reelected for a further triennal term until october 2004; the actual President , for the triennal term 2005-2007 has been elected Mrs.Luciana Queirolo.
The activities of the Association consist :
  • in the editing of an Offial Newsletter , which is not for sale, but sent only to AIAS members quarterly;
  • in organizing the Annual Congress and Exhibition, which represents our most important aggregating moment . The Congress , travelling event, does not make use exclusively of the Association’s Official seat, but is organized where a supporting cooperation is offered , with the aim to bring near even the most distant members. A suiseki exhibition of the Association’s members is programmed in the Congress circle , with awarding assigned by qualified  juries and Lectures, often held by international experts, take place. The irremissibile social Gala dinner is a profitable and hearty moment to get acquainted and to close friendships, while the Awarding Ceremony also takes place.

*******
The initial enthusiasm, as it often happens, is not sufficient, the force of numbers is essential. Not only, but in those numbers there have to be also those people producing and positively.
On beginning : few members = to few funds in the counter. So we decided to ask to members a small contribution for the enrolment of their own stones to the Annual Exhibition.This customs is still in force,allowing us to face printing and mailing costs of our Newsletters.
The above mentioned equation did not allow that the Newsletter could come to light just on the birth of the Association; what we needed were: a suitable reserve fund in the Association’s counter plus someone having capacity and availability to carry out a good Newsletter with possibile minor costs.
It was thanks to Mr.Marco Favèro that the first “Newsletter in experimental test” was edited  in Novembre 2001, after the Congress held in Lerici ( la Spezia ). Mr.Marco Favèro took care of the carring out and distribution up to “Summer 2004” number.
Its publication is four monthly (3 numbers per year).
 

The "Autumn-Winter" number is mainly based on our National Congress and on the Exhibition not for a mere satisfaction of the winners but it is a memorandum of evaluations, critics and suggestions in order to improbe our choices and to correct eventual mistakes of realization.
   

On the “Spring”  and “Summer” editions there take space:

·        traditional filosophic arguments, aesthetics and base compositions, technic, planning and working methods…..

·        tests of the members , personal experiences of most expert among us, experimental trials of  international experts….

·        in other words “the world of suiseki”, but without closing eyes and ears in front of other different traditions of the stone. Traditions which coexist, that clash (sometimes merging in to each other, often not) and giving endless arguments of discussions and confrontation.
   
»