This is the planting that I want you to critique. It’s from from Kiki Bonsai. Go ahead, make my day Just write a little critique of the planting above. It doesn’t have to be perfect; it doesn’t even have to make sense. We’re short on entries, so anything is better than nothing. And who knows? [...]
Contest entry number eight by Jonathan Pessin. There’s something going on with this little juniper, though I’m not sure where’s it’s headed. Cascade? In any case, it’s potential will have a hard time developing in such a small pot. Most of the best shohin are grown in larger pots (or even in the ground) and [...]
This image is from a video entitled ‘growth’ by Richard Lantz. Bonsai as metaphor Richard Lantz’s entry is less about bonsai than it is about what it means to be human; specifically (according to Amanda Rataj’s comments on Richard’s site) “control and the desire to better understand the place of the individual in society.” Bonsai [...]
This elegant five tree planting was submitted by Michelle Dougherty (Bunjin Journal). A simple, natural look If you’ve been following our Great Debate posts, you know that some people see a dichotomy between naturalistic and traditional bonsai. If I had to put Michelle’s drawing into one of these two groups, it would be naturalistic. Though [...]
This simple entry by João Pires reminds me of the sumi brush paintings from long ago and far away (at least as long ago as the origins of bonsai and as far away as the wild and rugged Yellow Mountains of China). A few simple strokes Perhaps the best way to approach this kind of [...]
This was the first entry in our contest. It’s from Jim(?). We had posted a bonsai paint-by-numbers (see image and explanation below) as a starting point for the contest and Jim is the only entrant to use it. A troubled slumber Here’s what Jim has to say about his entry: “First eh? Well here’s my [...]
