Page 50 - BSAM 2017 Q1
P. 50
LEFT SIDE BACK
RIGHT SIDE
This last solution
had some problems regarding the positioning of the greenery because there was
no real rst branch, not even one that could have been carried forward from the back.
48 | BCI | January/February/March 2017
I think a good key to creativity when doing bonsai, is to have a long-term vision. We never work for an immediate result but rather pursue a project that can be developed over time. With the help of cultivation techniques we can a ord to achieve certain objectives in due course that have nothing to do with ‘fast food’ bonsai.
Bonsai change and so the people who work on them. A person who cultivates the same bonsai for many years can develop a di erent aesthetic sense and change their own tree, always respecting the past.
ANALYSIS: Grown for one year in my garden, it was nally time to rework the pine. I wanted to try to give more character to the trunk by choosing a new front, analyzing what I thought was the best idea to high- light this expressive movement and at the same time make the foliage more dynamic. Personally, I prefer to design my bonsai with a clear and unambiguous direction. This pine tree could make a good bonsai from di erent sides because fortunately, the trunk was moving in all directions.
FIRST POSSIBLE FRONT SECOND POSSIBLE FRONT
I began the work with the help of my students, analyzing two possible fronts that were more appealing to my eye. The front view of the trunk in the picture on the left is very curvy with a double possibility of creating a design owing to the right or left, given the generous amount of branching. While the front in the picture on the right in my opinion is more aggressive with the curve in the mid trunk almost coming towards the observer and the very dramatic nal curve of the trunk. This last solution had some problems regarding the positioning of the greenery because there was no real rst branch, not even one that could have been car- ried forward from the back.
However, I was convinced that with time, this would be the best solution for this bonsai.
