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Hans, last I checked most of your trees (that you have posted on your site) were not seedlings you started and waited oh, 20-40 years to finish. Yours tend to be collected trees, some you have collected and some that you have purchased, or have been given or have traded for. Then you applied your eye and talent to them and over time yo have developed beautiful trees.

This is exactly what I believe Al is stating- you are more likely to get really good trees when you start with really good material

Hi, and yes off course I try to work with good material, hack i drove 2 times up and down to Italy (5000 kilometres) to buy a yamadori of almost 4000 euros. But I'm allso capable to make a nice bonsai out off mediocre material from a garden centre if necessary though. And that is my point I tried to make in my posts. When i enter the Gingko Awards, my bonsai are shown among bonsai that are made by good amateurs and good pros. Some bonsai are made by them self or made by others, from imported half finished trees or raw Yamadori. To me that is all OK. To style a imported tree is, if don right, difficult enough and will give quick results. And if you are any good in bonsai, not much can go wrong in styling those prefab trees. This is also so because the real artist is matured in the art of bonsai and therefore was/is experienced enough to make his or here decision witch way to go in his bonsai live/career. My point is that you should first reach that point before you can honestly say, it is al about the tree. And I know what Al is saying, and most of it is right! But don't make what I have tried to do so passioned for the last 17 years sound so simple, please don't tell me that I have been wasting almost all of my time to grasp and learn a art form were only the end result is important, no matter how you reached it! Please don't compare apples with pears.
You have to learn all the roads, before you decide witch way you want to walk, or give directions to others.
Hans.

3-Jun-2007	#43
hansvanmeer bonsaiTALK Master Craftsman Join Date: May-2005 Country: The Netherlands Posts: 965	Hans, last I checked most of your trees (that you have posted on your site) were not seedlings you started and waited oh, 20-40 years to finish. Yours tend to be collected trees, some you have collected and some that you have purchased, or have been given or have traded for. Then you applied your eye and talent to them and over time yo have developed beautiful trees. This is exactly what I believe Al is stating- you are more likely to get really good trees when you start with really good material Hi, and yes off course I try to work with good material, hack i drove 2 times up and down to Italy (5000 kilometres) to buy a yamadori of almost 4000 euros. But I'm allso capable to make a nice bonsai out off mediocre material from a garden centre if necessary though. And that is my point I tried to make in my posts. When i enter the Gingko Awards, my bonsai are shown among bonsai that are made by good amateurs and good pros. Some bonsai are made by them self or made by others, from imported half finished trees or raw Yamadori. To me that is all OK. To style a imported tree is, if don right, difficult enough and will give quick results. And if you are any good in bonsai, not much can go wrong in styling those prefab trees. This is also so because the real artist is matured in the art of bonsai and therefore was/is experienced enough to make his or here decision witch way to go in his bonsai live/career. My point is that you should first reach that point before you can honestly say, it is al about the tree. And I know what Al is saying, and most of it is right! But don't make what I have tried to do so passioned for the last 17 years sound so simple, please don't tell me that I have been wasting almost all of my time to grasp and learn a art form were only the end result is important, no matter how you reached it! Please don't compare apples with pears. You have to learn all the roads, before you decide witch way you want to walk, or give directions to others. Hans. __________________ "I fly so high...and fall so low!" Website: www.karamotto.org Bonsai Blog: http://www.knowledgeofbonsai.org/ha..._meer/index.php AoB Profil on Hans van Meer: http://www.artofbonsai.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1191