I hope all those that think this is such a wonderful idea do not take me wrong. Like the last thread that I seemed to put a hex on as far as forum members posting trees to have more experienced members look at them, this idea is challenging.
I hope you understand that this small exchange you have had with only a mention of what you wish to do is only a sample of what can go terribly wrong with anything remotely having to do with art and bonsai.
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As I am still training most of my own trees, I would need use mostly images from the gallery here,
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This is exactly what you should be showing. It is the basic work done early on that sets the foundation for the tree in the future. There used to be a guy here, Ripsgreentree, that billed himself as a grower of the worlds best stock. (actually he still does) The problem was he had no artistic bones in his body and has had only meager success with doing the artistic side of bonsai, sure he can create thousands of cuttings from a gallon tree, but can't cut out a bonsai to save his sole. I always told him that to be making stock that an artist would want needs to be grown by an artist from the start. Sure you don't need to be someone that finishes trees, but artists want stock that has had some attention to branch structure and taper, movement and diminishing perspective and visual speed.
These are the things I presume you are doing to your trees. If you aren't why not? If you are show us what "you" did to prepare your stock for the future.
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See, great trees use these elements wether or not the bonsai-ist meant to or not, I just plan to bring it to light, to illustrate a point.
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I call this tuesday morning quarterbacking. Even I with no art background can tell you what makes the tree work and what makes the tree not work. The big problem is that we are working with living trees that do not always like to succumb to our chisel so to speak. We do not have the same flexibility that a sculpter or painter may have. If we cut the wrong branch we are doomed from an artistic standpoint and must go back and rethink our whole concept of what we are going to do now to rectify our mistake.
Most of the top people in bonsai today have no formal education in art. The art eggheads ( I mean that respectfully) can all tell us why the tree works, but only after the art is done. There is seldom anyone there during the real work of the tree with a list of all the art rules telling the master he can't do that because it is not written in the book of arts.
We do trees from our heart, and feel the movement with out hands. We sculpt with a feeling the wells from deep within and pay no attention to whats around us. We conjur up an image within our mind and manafest it with wood and foliage, not by a set of rules.
Now I know there will be someone like Zen that comes by tuesday afternoon and will say "
see that tree works because it followed all the rules of artistry ".
I will sit back and say,
" Ha! silly guy, that was my only choice because the reverse taper did not glare from that angle ". I guess at that point I will be looked at as some sort of art guru
Cheers, Al