John Yoshio Naka was born on August 16, 1914 in Denver, Colorado. Eight days after his birth, he and his family returned to Japan. His grandfather was his constant companion, and from him he observed the way he trimmed and shaped the plants around them.

John took up landscaping when he became nineteen years old. He learned the fundamentals about creating the ideal setting: foliage, window and limestone. Once he completed his studies, wanting to further his knowledge, he pursed further art education in Japan.

When war broke out in 1935, John was sent back to Colorado, as his father feared he might be deployed. He lived with his brother, Sadao, before marrying Alice Toshito Mizunaga in 1936. The couple had three sons, Eugene, Robert, and Richard.

In 1946, John and his family moved to Los Angeles. He began working as a landscaper, focusing mostly on Japanese gardens. John Naka began to learn bonsai techniques with encouragement from his friend, Sam Doi.

The Montezuma Cypress was his first work. 32 inches tall, he allowed a cypress to mature in a miniature form. After this work, John Naka began to be recognized as a bonsai artist. John Naka and his friends, Fumiko Nagata, Ai okumura, Joseph Yamashiro, and Morihei Furuya began the Southern California Bonsai Club.

Naka became the leading teacher in the art of bonsai, and he was the main speaker at many symposiums during the 1970s, visiting countless countries, educating the curious of his art. Many of his techniques were published in newspaper articles, books, and in the “Bonsai Journal.” One of his articles included the transformation of a nursery grown juniper plant into a suitable bonsai. His own bonsai have been viewed by a wide variety of audiences, each astounded by the beautiful simplicity of each work. To John Naka, each bonsai was his grandchild, and his attention to them can be clearly seen.

John Naka was selected as one of the honorary advisers to the National Bonsai Foundation. He has become legendary, with a number of buildings named in his honor. These, of course, are tributes to the man they regard as the “Father of Popular Bonsai.”