Thanks Walter Pall, that was very interesting.
Al,
I agree with some of your original post, but from the photos I've seen I don't think the naturally styled trees follow Japanese bonsai rules a lot of the time, but I don't see this as freeform and after reading Walter Pall's post it wouldn't be neo-classical neither.
Quote:
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Thus the term neo-classical is often used in a derogative way, meaning a bonsai which is styled as a cliché, which is a copy of a copy of a copy. And the quality is deteriorating with every copying. The bonsai somehow look all the same, as if they were cut out with a cookie-cutter – “cookie-cutter bonsai”.
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If I'm understanding Walter's post correctly, bonsai art would become stagnant if everyone followed the known Japanese rules as far as possible.
I don't see why trees that might not be following the Japanese rules are just considered freeform. It seems to me that a tree not styled to look natural would be more freeform.