Is Bonsai Art?

[LeftHandLuke]

I think so. What do you think?

 

[BonsaiDTLA]

No, it's a lifestyle

 

[LeftHandLuke]

No, it's a lifestyle

AKA: An obsession.

 

[BonsaiDTLA]

AKA: An obsession.

Addiction too

 

[Dogestoevsky]

John Baldessari, the pencil story, 1972

 

[Lorax7]

It depends. Are you saying anything through the visual language of your bonsai display (the tree, with its pot and any accompanying accents) that could be picked up and understood by a viewer? If so, then it's art. If not, then it's craft.

To quote Jerry Saltz, art critic for New York Magazine: "Art is thought embedded in material." I think that's about as good a definition as you're going to find.

 

[Cajunrider]

I am safe here. I only have pre-bonsai so no one can argue with me whether my trees are art. As for the bonsai out there, I am not qualified to say. Some bonsai move me; others are no different than nursery trees.

 

[Carol 83]

This is not the first time this subject has been brought up. I'll just sit back and watch.

 

[AaronThomas]

If you have to ask…..

 

[KikurageOtomo]

I am safe here. I only have pre-bonsai so no one can argue with me whether my trees are art. As for the bonsai out there, I am not qualified to say. Some bonsai move me; others are no different than nursery trees.

The creation of a canvas alone is crucial to the creation of art!

I think my opinion would have to be, getting pedantic about the threshold upon which something is called art is a fools errand. Certainly some pieces of art or bonsai are *more* universally recognized as artistic pieces.But if one is in the pursuit of creating with the purpose of inevitably evoking thought or emotion from other sapient beings, it must be art!

 

[August]

Gonna throw a wild one in here;
I think any creative endeavor can be considered art.

 

[Michael P]

Art is anything you can get away with.

 

[ABCarve]

Art is a verb.

 

[Mikecheck123]

A lot of it sure seems like farming.

 

[michaelj]

I like to say that bonsai is something I like to do, not something I like to have.
That said, one of my clubs has been displaying its trees in a museum for the past few years, right next to some Bronze Age artifacts, so I'm going to say it can certainly be considered art.

 

[shohin_branches]

Bonsai is a type of sculpture art where your medium is a living tree. The artist does a call and response with the tree and through that consistent collaboration over years you end up with a work of art.

I volunteer working on trees at one of the few permanent bonsai collections that is part of an art institution. Most are housed at botanical gardens.

Bonsai Exhibit at Lynden

With a collection of more than 50 monumental sculptures sited across 40 acres of park, lake and woodland, the Lynden Sculpture Garden is committed to promoting the enjoyment and appreciation of art, sculpture, and the environment through exhibitions, educational experiences, and connections with...

www.lyndensculpturegarden.org

 

[Potawatomi13]

In Japan, perhaps other eastern areas where is origin answer is NO. It would be arrogant to consider self "artist". In western countries many arrogant ones wish to claim status as "ARTIST" and advance self importance. Often these are encouraged by the ignorant.

 

[Maros]

This is not the first time this subject has been brought up. I'll just sit back and watch.

My thoughts exactly. Gonna grab my extra large popcorn box and wait for heavyweights to chime in. And I was afraid for a while that this is going to be boring summer.
I'm just sorry for that girl whose thread on yamadori/non yamadori "lol" thread will die so young.

 

[StarJasmine]

I think it is both art and science.

It is a collaborative art involving both owner and tree.

Maybe we bring out the best in each other

 

[Daniel son STL]

I don’t understand all the different answers.

When your adding your own creativity to something, skill, beauty, that’s art. Plain snd simple. Bonsai is a living changing art!