After. Pretty impressive, no? You’ll encounter very few bonsai that are both this powerful and this refined anywhere on this planet. In fact, I challenge you to find even one that rivals it (they do exist, but are oh so rare). Photo from Bonsai Today issue 59 (still available).
Too refined?
Masahiko Kimura has fallen out of favor with some people over the last few years. You might hear or see comments about how his bonsai is overly sculpted, overly refined, unnatural looking. For where I sit, it’s unfortunate when we feel we must take sides and pick either refined and sculpted or natural looking as superior. Both have their place in bonsai, and you might even say that dividing bonsai into two neat categories just limits our view. I suspect Kimura might say something like that (pure speculation on my part). If you look at the full range of his work, though refined and sculpted (and amazing) are his hallmarks, all of his bonsai have at least an authentic natural touch, and some are even naturalistic (maybe not like Dan Robinson’s, but still…).
Before. Already powerful, but what a mess! If you’d like to see the steps that got us from here to the photo above, check out Bonsai Today issue 59.
The Magician, The Bonsai Art of Kimura 2, marked down to $9.95 from $29.95.