The Bonsai Master Myth...

[Bolero]

Damn, Adair... don't look him in the eyes!!! Bolero should be allowed to have these conversations by himself... just like the wild eyed dudes screaming at nothing on the New York subway.

I just so happen to admire those NYC Subway dudes....

 

[penumbra]

I just so happen to admire those NYC Subway dudes....

Not surprisingly.

 

[Bolero]

I find the whole "Master Gardener" thing basically bullshit. It's 40 hours of classes...and three months of your time on and off...and 40 hours per year of volunteer work. Has no bearing on your actual ABILITY as a gardener...

Quick and Dirty: What It Really Means to be a Master Gardener

extension.tennessee.edu

Kind of different in the competitive world of professional bonsai in Japan...

CLUELESS

 

[misfit11]

Very well stated Adair I am now closer to understanding the term Bonsai Master. all things considered I consider you a Master...

I would too. Maybe not on the level of say Boon, Ryan Neil etc, but yeah. In his own right, Adair is a master. Meaning he’s achieved a certain level of mastery in bonsai. The same could be said for a number of the more accomplished members on BonsaiNut.

 

[Bolero]

I would too. Maybe not on the level of say Boon, Ryan Neil etc, but yeah. In his own right, Adair is a master. Meaning he’s achieved a certain level of mastery in bonsai. The same could be said for a number of the more accomplished members on BonsaiNut.

I think you see Bonsai Gardening for what it actually is.....

 

[misfit11]

Bullshit. I don't find this to be true at all. In my experience, "Masters" of any craft tend to be people who, while highly skilled, also recognize that one can never 'know everything there is to know', and that learning is, in fact, not a means to an end....It is an endless process.

I also find myself wondering why some people are so concerned with labels such as "master", and "true bonsai trees". I know its in our nature to label and categorize everything.....but in this case, what purpose does it serve?

I think the term “master” in bonsai is more of a term of respect and recognition that someone has reached a level of mastery in the art. I don’t think any of the particular masters ever say, “Oh, I’m a master now. Nothing more to learn!”. One of the reasons bonsai is so great is because you’ll never know everything that there is to know. In fact, I’ve personally heard Kathy encouraging people to attend workshops of all different artists. She’ll say, “I’m not the only one here! Go to workshops with Ryan, Boon, Bjorn...”.
Only a closed minded narcissist would think that they are the be all and end all of bonsai. *cough Kimura cough*

 

[Adair M]

Damn, Adair... don't look him in the eyes!!! Bolero should be allowed to have these conversations by himself... just like the wild eyed dudes screaming at nothing on the New York subway.

Yeah , feel like Harry Potter staring down Voldemort!

 

[Adair M]

I would too. Maybe not on the level of say Boon, Ryan Neil etc, but yeah. In his own right, Adair is a master. Meaning he’s achieved a certain level of mastery in bonsai. The same could be said for a number of the more accomplished members on BonsaiNut.

Thanks, I’m flattered. I’m pretty good at some parts of bonsai, but absolutely clueless on others. I’ve made the conscious decision to limit my scope to just a few varieties. One reason is my climate and growing conditions, and the other is my mental abilities. I have difficulty multi-tasking. So, switching from THIS variety to THAT variety, over and over... well, I tried it once and I couldn’t keep up with what to do when... I have found by concentrating on just a few is more fun. (Shohin is a problem! To show Shohin, you have to have a lot of varieties! It’s hard!). (And to add irony to everything, I’ve won Best-in-Show at the National Shohin Exhibition, twice! Go figure!)

 

[Dav4]

Yeah , feel like Harry Potter staring down Voldemort!

You're giving Bolero too much credit!

 

[Adair M]

You're giving Bolero too much credit!

Nah, he was probably bored. There haven’t been any flame throwing thread on the ‘Nut recently!

 

[Paulpash]

Very well stated Adair I am now closer to understanding the term Bonsai Master. all things considered I consider you a Master...

And Bolero, I consider you to be a Master Baiter

 

[rockm]

CLUELESS

OK--didn't know you were an Amy Heckerling fan...

 

[misfit11]

I find the whole "Master Gardener" thing basically bullshit. It's 40 hours of classes...and three months of your time on and off...and 40 hours per year of volunteer work. Has no bearing on your actual ABILITY as a gardener...

Quick and Dirty: What It Really Means to be a Master Gardener

extension.tennessee.edu

Kind of different in the competitive world of professional bonsai in Japan...

I always wondered what the title of Master Gardener meant. You see the old folks at the library and they have this title and you’re like, “Master! Please teach me everything you know!”. Thanks

 

[Vance Wood]

Being considered a Bonsai Master implies that you know everything there is to know about Bonsai Growing, Training, Styling, Showing and it gives Tremendous Credibility to the Individual...Justified or not...

---and with that comes great responsibility! Every tree you have had any credit with will forever be the product of your input------good bad or holy shit that stinks.

 

[Bolero]

When I think of a Master Artist I think of M:Angelo, DiVinci, David, Goya,,, etc...........
not some old guy who faithfully waters and prunes his old tree in a pot....

 

[Atom#28]

It really seems like your only goal is to denigrate the overall integrity of bonsai as a cultural, artistic phenomenon. What is so dissimilar between "some old guy who faithfully waters and prunes his old tree" and an old guy who dips a clump of animal hair in paint and smears it on the ceiling, or an old man who faithfully chisels rocks to make them look like people? Are they not achieving the same goal through different mediums?

 

[_#1_]

When I think of a Master Artist I think of M:Angelo, DiVinci, David, Goya,,, etc...........
not some old guy who faithfully waters and prunes his old tree in a pot....

The guys that faithfully water and prune are guys like you and me. The master maintains, or event improve the existing bonsai image.

I can count on it that if you or I where given a masterpiece bonsai, we would ruin or even kill it in a couple seasons at best

 

[leatherback]

I also find myself wondering why some people are so concerned with labels such as "master", and "true bonsai trees".

Mostly, people who realize they will never achieve any level of status in a field get obsessed by the status and try to find ways to put down people who do get somewhere in their field.

*cough Kimura cough*

So you know what Kimura thinks?

 

[Atom#28]

Mostly, people who realize they will never achieve any level of status in a field get obsessed by the status and try to find ways to put down people who do get somewhere in their field.

Couldn't agree more.

 

[AZbonsai]

At what point do I transform from a Bonsai guy into a Bonsai Master,

The day after you buy the tshirt on Amazon.

That's how I became a luchador as well.