I started bonsai cause I thought it would get me in good with the ladies....BUT..
...where are they? I am Joking. I am an artist. A lousy one at that. But I enjoy it. So it must be that it is a hobby. I dont lock myself in the basement for 90 hours and come up with one masterpiece and fourteen pieces of crap. That would be a painter, or a sculpture. My art comes thru over time. Whether it is to be a masterpiece is determined thru my eyes at the beginning of the material. I believe then and only then is the where the art and artist become "alive". Knowing where the material is going, seeing its future and story come together through simple techniques such as wire, pruning, lime sulphur and a great pot.
For the fun of it. I picked up an Art theory book and substituted the word "bonsai" for the word "art". I got dizzy and puked. It didnt work as well as when I substituted the word "art" for the word "bonsai" in my bonsai (art) books.
Al ---great thread
Paul