trends on asian pots

LOL, you sound like me on the topic of cars. I've always purchased older japanese manufacturers with lots of life in them for lowest dollar. Kept telling myself more interested in getting there inexpensively, then with tieing a bunch of money up in exotic named vehicles.

But as you suggested with framing oils, the right frame can make the picture, as does the right pot. As a art major in youth,my gifts have always been surrounded by art. Probably brought me to bonsai and other art things from the japanese culture.

Our local bonsai retail shop has their chinese and japanese pot purchases arriving soon. I'll be in line to find the right pot for shape or color. There's an olde song that includes love and marriage as going together like a horse and carriage. Probably considered a bit antiquated in an age of today's do everything cell phones. so I quess I'll end with something more recent than the song, but the truths are just as sage.

Different strokes for different strokes....

Please don't worry about run away technology and those who can't handle it.

Tell that to the guy who walked off an oceanside cliff and was killed -- still staring in fascination at whatever was passing on his I-pad last week. 

And I DON'T worry about it at all.  Events like that are of great benefit to the gene pool.  (Which need all the help it can get these days).

Dick,

since you were an Art Major, let me share two tales with you.

***As frame is to oil painting, so too is pot to tree.*l**

Years ago, when I was in Florence, Italy, studying Fine Art at what was then Studio Cecil-Graves. Mr. Charles Cecil,
took us to the Uffizi, and we stopped in front of - Rest on the flight to Egypt by Correggio

http://www.alloilpaint.com/correggio/15.jpg

He asked me about the oil painting. Correggio is a favourite of mine, and I spoke about the colour, the drawn content, the pattern,
the idea, and so on for maybe about ten minutes.

Then with that wicked boyish smile he had, he asked me what I thought about ---- the Frame.
I hadn't even noticed the large gold frame.

Then he said, a frame is for protecting the painting, often the supports for hanging are attached to it, it is expendable.

It is the content of the image that is important, if it can hold your eye/mind for a period of time, so you can enjoy it.

Second tale -

The other day I was on You Tube, and I came across something on Japanese Gardens, who is who and so on.

After 2 minutes of Collected trees, mostly Driftwood, my eyes began to glaze over.
I never even noticed the pots, just how boring collected trees with green hats, were.
Or the hundreds of nursery grown Maples, etc, in similar shapes.

If the effort is lacking, what good is the frame / pot ?
Or worse, when the onlooker, starts to talk about the pot and there is no mention of the tree ?

Jim,

on another list on Art. Mr. V. Elliot, used to speak of such folk, easing up the gene pool.

Laters.
Khaimraj

the second story you mention, seeing so many trees, eyes glazing over-well I have the same problem, when I go to a large museum-I always select to see only a few trees, or paintings, or sculptures, not try to see it all, that is when you will forget it all, be selective!

Thanks for sharing your experiences... Sounds like you had some great ones...
It is also said that "the devil is in the details" and I find it true in many arenas surrounding bonsai.
Friend and teacher, David De Groot from his latest book release entited principles of bonsai design has this to say about our topic on pots.
The pot or container is an intregal part of a bonsai composition, but it is subordinate to the tree and therefore always of less visual mass than the tree. It relates to the tree in terms of size,shape,color and texture.

Yes, Dick, I do agree with David's premise whole heartedly. I would however like to say that in the past-say about 80 or more so years ago, it frequently was about the pot, and not about the tree-one only has to look at some of the examples of the Imperial pots, it was not necessarily about ostentation(that is after all not the Japanese way) but it was about value of a pot-say an antique Chinese pot(one recently sold at almost 1 million USD.)It was frequently about showing off, just like stands-but that is another post. Choosing the "right" pot is such a complex problem-it is beyond shape, size,detail-such as lip, feet, design, color. I have frequently returned from Japan with pots, that I deemed "perfect" for a specific tree, only to reject it upon my return and placing it on my sales table-but I keep trying, that is why I always seem to have some pots for sale!

always appreciare your contributions, thanks Kora...

Dick,

Along with using the pots for bonsai, there are people like me who actually collect them for the shear beauty, rarity, and quality. Unfortunately, the price of pots are proportional to these three qualities and in most cases one has to wait until he saves enough, or have deep pockets.

To answer your question, I love Japanese pots more because there are/were so many potters who made them. Although Western pottery is much newer, some Western potters have achieved that exceptional quality and beauty that I would love to get in my collections (I do have some though). Then there are Chinese pots that have been around for years, and are highly collectible (I love them too).

The bottom line is that it doesn't matter where the pot comes from; for a unbiased collector, if a pot falls in the three categories mentioned above, then it's worth collecting. Paying an 'arm and a leg' for it is a whole different craziness that collectors go through; I realized the craziness first-hand when I purchased a Tsukinowa pot last year.

I agree about the collection of Asian ceramics.  perhaps some day I may be able to purchase a Tsukinowa Yusen pot.  If you don't mind I would love to see your Yusen container.  Heian Kouzan and Tofokuji Sr. are two other favorites of mine.

juniper07 wrote:Dick,

Along with using the pots for bonsai, there are people like me who actually collect them for the shear beauty, rarity, and quality. Unfortunately, the price of pots are proportional to these three qualities and in most cases one has to wait until he saves enough, or have deep pockets.

To answer your question, I love Japanese pots more because there are/were so many potters who made them. Although Western pottery is much newer, some Western potters have achieved that exceptional quality and beauty that I would love to get in my collections (I do have some though). Then there are Chinese pots that have been around for years, and are highly collectible (I love them too).

The bottom line is that it doesn't matter where the pot comes from; for a unbiased collector, if a pot falls in the three categories mentioned above, then it's worth collecting. Paying an 'arm and a leg' for it is a whole different craziness that collectors go through; I realized the craziness first-hand when I purchased a Tsukinowa pot last year.

I love contemporary Japanese and traditional Chinese Bonsai pots...

Just curious... who are the five best potters in Tokoname right now?

As I go to Tokoname frequently, I would say the best potters right now would be: Gyozan and Yuuji, Ikkou Watenabe; Koyo family-father son and wife of son, Reiho-not necessarily in that order- but there are others, that I am not familiar with- i.e. I don't know them personally, have however some of their pots: Maruhei and Shibakatsu come to mind-both kilns produce wonderful pots! Gyozan frequently displays his pots on facebook. Yuuji only occasionally makes custom pots. Koyo (the kiln is also known as Aiba) family make wonderful pots-their glazes are legendary.