Chinese Bonsai and Japanese Bonsai
Posted in chinese bonsai on 08/11/2008 08:56 pm by CharlotteI found a really informative article about the differences between Chinese bonsai and Japanese bonsai styles. It said that Chinese bonsai have a more “natural” look, while Japanese bonsai are more exact and “manicured.”
The guy who wrote the article thinks that the Japanese bonsai style might be more popular than the Chinese bonsai style because Japan has been more “open” to western countries than China has been (well, until lately). I think that he might have a point!
But the best part of the article talks about combining Chinese and Japanese styles of bonsai, pretty much inventing a new and unique bonsai style. I’m pretty excited about that idea and can’t wait to try it on my own trees.
This guy has a very excellent blog. Check out the article at http://practicalbonsai.blogspot.com/2008/05/chinese-bonsai-style-v-japanese-bonsai.html and then check out his other posts!
Anyway, from what I’m learning, the main difference between Chinese bonsai and Japanese bonsai is this: Japanese bonsai styles are much more rigid, well-defined and demanding. Japanese bonsai trees stick closer to artistic, ideal forms. In the Japanese style, you have fixed forms of bonsai such as “root over rock,” several types of cascading styles, etc. Most of the time, any given Japanese-style bonsai will take one of these forms.
Chinese-styled bonsai, on the other hand, are often shaped into animals and Chinese characters, but not always. Sometimes some very small figurines are added (like tiny people, houses, ox-drawn carts and such) to make the tree look like it is part of a landscape.