niponica is a web magazine that introduces modern Japan to people all over the world.
2015 No.17
To read the e-book you need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser and a free Flash Player plug-in from Adobe Systems Inc. installed.
Miniature Is Big in Japan
New Ways to Have Fun with Bonsai
Mini bonsai and bonsai-inspired art recreate nature in a tiny pot
Bonsai present scenes of the natural world and the changing seasons, all in a pot. The art demonstrates nature in compact form, attracting worldwide admiration. Attentive care is taken in arranging the shape, flower and fruit of the tree, and bringing these together with a pot to match. The result can be something more beautiful than nature itself.
Recent trends add to the fascination of bonsai. Some focus on achieving the minimum size for close-at-hand enjoyment; others tap into pop culture. Mini bonsai rest on the palm of the hand, decorating bonsai with figurines can make a micro diorama, and man-made materials can create bonsai that will never die. The bonsai hobby lives on in greater diversity than ever.
Photos: Kuribayashi Shigeki Collaboration: Ichimoku Issowa Gallery
Bonsai change with the seasons, adding color to daily life. Mini bonsai are no more than 10 cm tall, making them easier to handle and display. Clockwise from the teacup: Chinese elm, Japanese forest grass, Japanese hawthorn, Chinese juniper (sargent juniper), matsumurae maple.
No matter how small the bonsai, its branches and trunk still have to be trimmed to keep the form beautiful.
Mini bonsai pots are so small that several fit on the palm of the hand. An added enjoyment is choosing a pot with a decorative pattern and shape that will match the tree and flowers.
Left: The yellow fruit and the leaves of this lesser flowering quince somehow balance each other nicely.
Right: The trunk and branches have been pruned to lead the eyes from right to left. The cute red fruit on this dwarf pomegranate heightens the effect.
Art director Aiba Takanori created a “Bonsai Art” world that is somehow reminiscent of a theme park. From his imagination has come a resort tree house.
(Photo: Masunaga Kenji and Nacása & Partners. ©TOKYO GOOD IDEA Development Institute Co., Ltd.)
The figure helps to make a picture that tells a story: having fun mountain climbing when the maple trees are in their fall colors. (Creation of Paradise Yamamoto. Photo: Tanaka Hideki.)
Wires of different colors create a branch and trunk motif. The metal glows in ways a plant never could, adding to the appeal. Mini bonsai by the American artist, Ken To.