Attila

Hi Carmi,

Here is the idea that started this. Vance Wood started a thread at the AoB website, called "The problem with the american bonsai". It was a very popular thread, it went on for a long time, and a lot of people joined in. Some of them were accomplished and well known artists. During the thread, the idea that European bonsai is much better than American bonsai, was frequently voiced by some. Others vehemently denied this. Of course, nobody could give a final answer.

So - we thought - why not organize a friendly contest? If people are so opinionated one way or the other, why not put their money where their mouth is? This could be really fun.

I am not a big fan of bonsai contests. I love bonsai as it is, without trying to prove anything. But others love contests. Especially in Europe, contests are very popular. They do it all the time, and with spectacular results.

Carmi, I don't know whether or not you ever played soccer with your friends. People come together, and play, and they have a lot of fun. It is not vulgar, and it is not ridiculous. It is fun.

You can look at it as a friendly soccer game (or pick any other sport) between two continents. Wouldnt' you think that a lot of people would be interested in watching such a game?

Some people believe that this is too "exclusive": other nations cannot participate. Well, we have already done a world-wide contest. And we will do more of those. We cannot do it every month.

This is a little different. This is a contest that requires two teams. Just like any other competition between two parties. Friendly competitions are very popular in all cultures around the world. They bring people together, for the love of the game: in this case, the "game of bonsai". Bonsai can be art, hobby, but can also ge a game. The point is to have fun. Nobody will make any money here, but we can all have fun.

We selected Europe vs. America because people from Europe and America seemed to be the most interested, according to our observations. Of course, if this turns out to be popular, we can do it with other teams as well, we have absolutely no problem doing that.

In conclusion, I can only say that some people love contests, others hate it. If one hates contests, one probably hates the "Crespi cup", and the "Gingko awards", and the "World Bonsai Contest" as well. If one loves contests, then this could be an interesting one. We don't claim that this contest is as prestigious as the ones I''ve menioned above, but in the past we have received some pretty impressive sumbissions from very talented artists. We hope that it will be the case this time as well.

This is an experiment, never done before. As all experiments, there is always a risk of failure, and we have the courage to take that chance. If it turns out that people are disinterested, no problem. But there is a chance that people will be motivated to show what they have accomplished during recent times. There is a chance, that some artists will be motivated to show that, although bonsai is a very recent development in their country, they came a long way from their humble beginnings and they can compete with the best. If that's the case, this could be exciting to watch. We also hope that the list of awards will increase as the competition goes on, which will make this even more fun for the participants.

In conclusion, I just wanted to let you all know what was the idea behind this. If you feel that this doesn't belong to this forum, feel free to delete it. We are just trying to bring a little more excitement in the bonsai community, it would be really sad if you saw this as an insult.

Best regards,

Attila