3 point display for exhibit

mike_p

Again today I've been working on bonsai for the big garden show at the San Francisco Cow Palace. Tim Kong wants six 3 point displays in the exhibit, and to that end has asked 6 experienced bonsaiists to each do one. He asked me to coordinate the setup.
The image is now I've been considering, with my bunjin procumbens nana, a scroll by artist Suzanne Barrymore of Santa Barbara, and in honor of the Year of the Dog, a cast iron Foo Dog from Gumps.

Attached Images

1dog.jpg (48.6 KB, 81 views)

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ChrisM

mike, i hope this comes out right. i find the three choices to be good ones, and, unlike some, i do not have a problem with the plant meeting the scroll. the critisism i would like to make would be to space the dog out to the left further in order to broaden the display. i think as it stand, it shows a narrow display for a narrow tree. in the first pic, your current display, the second and third portray my thoughts, for what its worth. i may be way off here, and if so, please explain.

chris

Attached Images

	3.JPG (32.0 KB, 13 views)
	2.JPG (32.4 KB, 11 views)
	1.JPG (26.4 KB, 21 views)

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007

I don't know much about formal displays, but I like the third shot in Chris's set of pictures. I feel that moving the rock to the left puts it more in a direct line from the foliage of the tree.

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ChrisM

second and third are the same shot, just with a triangle on one. triangle for "three point" display. when i sat down with kenji miyata, one of the very first things he said to me was, "triangle is important for good bonsai". while most trees don't openly exhibit a triangle, many facets of bonsai are based on that simple shape.

chris

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sauce

Hi Chris, I'm jumping into something that I have no experience with here but I would say I like Mikes display. The reason? Mikes display does have a nice triangle. If you were to place the right side of your triangles line in line with the trunk of the tree you would have, I think a very nice right triangle. Is that not desirable? I'm asking because I don't know.

mike_p

Chris, you're not "way off". Many times in 3 point display, the tree will touch the scroll. I was taught this way by an expert. Sometimes you see the tree almost block the scroll. I believe this to be wrong. There's an image on a bonsai website that shows it that way. Cuts the scroll in half. One theory of this 3 element display is the scroll is heaven since it rises upward, the bonsai is man, and the accent is earth. Bonsai, or man. should touch the path to heaven. Is this bonsai as theology? Maybe so.
Regarding the placement of the dog, it is too close, and the table I set up on is too small. On a longer table which I will have in the exhibit, you should be able to draw a line from the end of the branch to the tail of the dog and it will be approximately 45 degrees.

Mike

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ChrisM

sauce, i am not all that well versed in it either which is why after my opinion i asked the same question (in essense).

mike, thanks for the response. i didn't know you were working with limitations in regards to table size. so for the rest of us who aren't as knowledgeable about three point display, is it "required" to have a right triangle (45 degrees)?

chris

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mike_p

Chris, what really matters is it looks pleasing to the eye. The elements should all be "looking at each other" but not equidistant from each other. For instance, I think that if the scroll was centered, and the tree and accent were both the same distance from the scroll, it would be boring. A little assemetry and resolved tension work to create the scene. I don't know if I'm making any sense here. Maybe it's getting too late in the evening.

Mike

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Bonsai is not a hobby.
Bonsai is a way of life.
MP@BBB Studio

There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way
Gautama Buddha

PatArizona

G'day all...

Mike...I like the bonsai, the scroll, the dog...I also think that assemetry also helps.

I don't want to beat a dead horse, however, I still don't like the overlap. This is not criticism, nor is it from any text book or master, but rather, my personal opinion.

Given, the three point display is historical and widely taught, and will likely be with us forever, and then some. In spite of this, the ol' sage says, I would rather see no scroll in the display than to have the overlap...again, my personal opion.

Having said all that, Mike, I would rather see your bunjin, with the overlap, than to not see it at all.

Good luck with your display...

Pat

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