A few trees from the Carolina Bonsai Expo 2011

Thanks for posting the images. Ken and John, I think the display looked great. Sorry I missed it.

oops.

I have moved the ongoing discussion regarding the Buxus varieties to a separate thread in 'Bonsai', as requested by those involved.
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sorry John... I was making this post while you moved the others... I will just copy and paste

marcus watts wrote:who made the pot the ginkgo is in ? having a leaf texture in it to match the tree is a lovely detail - unless it is a fluke of the glazing?? surely not

That was my pot and the leaves are of Ginkgo. The pot is gas fired. The owner bought it at last years show and displayed his tree in it this year.

Dale

coh wrote:

JimLewis wrote:
...'Twas a good show -- as usual. I'm sorry that hornbeam didn't make People's Choice. I understand Walter discussed it at some length.

Does anyone know what he had to say about it? I know Walter posts here, maybe he'll offer some insights?

Chris

I said something along these lines:

This is definitely a tree and not a bonsai. it is a tree that has fallen over a long time ago and has built a bridge just where one was needed. During the night the monkeys and other shy ones rush over it. During the day the children love to walk over it. The dogs are very much afraid. They know something the children don't. Right under the bridge the alligator is waiting for those who fall off. The dogs have to get carried over the bridge. This touches my heart. I love it. Together with the little elm and the small rock composition the trio is best of show in my mind. All three made me smile and touch my heart.

No one needs to tell me that the three, at least the two smaller ones, are quite immature creations. There were many much more mature and refined bonsai in the show. But these three hapened to touch me more than the others. And that's the only thing that counts for me.

In bonsai today quite often it is forgotten to give the trees a soul. All effort goes into form. Form is everything for so many. In my eyes we have somehow lost track of what bonsai should be: a small tree in a container that touches your soul. Soul is much more important than form. But form we judge all the time and hardly anyone speaks about soul. I judge soul. Just in case someone does not like the word 'soul' in this context, he can use 'spirit' or 'character'.

Walter, Thank you for sharing that very interesting viewpoint. Something to think about for sure!

The tree I was referring to, that I thought Jim was referring to, was the Korean hornbeam with the exposed roots, #14 in the photo series.

Chris

Hmmmm... I thought the two Cedrus were really nice.

Walter Pall wrote:
In bonsai today quite often it is forgotten to give the trees a soul. All effort goes into form. Form is everything for so many. In my eyes we have somehow lost track of what bonsai should be: a small tree in a container that touches your soul. Soul is much more important than form.

"The truth of a thing is in the feel of it, not the think of it." - Stanley Kubrick

I concurred that beyond the physical appearance we should also look at the soul, spirit or character of the display. However, I also want to add that there is a difference between juvenile and mature soul. From my perspective display No 6 looks very immature both in appearance and character.
Cheers, CJ
http://newzealandteatreebonsai.blogspot.com/

coh wrote:Walter, Thank you for sharing that very interesting viewpoint. Something to think about for sure!

The tree I was referring to, that I thought Jim was referring to, was the Korean hornbeam with the exposed roots, #14 in the photo series.

Chris

Chris,

the korean hornbeam is clearly a sculpture, it has moved way from conventional bonsai design and has given up the idea to be an image of a real tree. It is a higly abstryct sculpture. As such it is good. For my personal taste it does not have the feeling of a tree, nor the soul, it leaves me cold. This may well be different with other viewers.
For me form is not the end but the means. The end is to touch the viewer. If form does not do this it can be as good as it wants to be, but it has failed. But the korean hornbeam is in very good company, many so called 'world class trees' don't do it.
Way too much emphasis is on form in bonsai these days.

Thanks again for taking to the time to share your thoughts!

I understand what you are saying. I've been to shows where certain trees just "speak" to me, and it's usually the trees that are not "perfect" or classically designed. Sometimes a tree reminds me of a special time in my life, or a special place, but more often it's something that can't really be verbalized very well.

Personally, I find myself more attracted to the Korean hornbeam. However, I'm basing that strictly on a photo, and seeing the trees in person often gives a very different feeling.

Chris

good pics , to me all the trees look stunning......