Junper Masterpiece....cheap

shohin kid

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I wonder if I could get a Pablo Picasso Masterpiece for only $300? :D
 

Bonsai Nut

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It's a good thing this isn't an "exhibition specimen masterpiece". They'd probably want $350 for it! :rolleyes:
 

october

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lol...Are they serious..........However, I think that given the trunk and the fact that the foliage looks pretty healthy. There is probably a nice tree in there somewhere.... Far, far from a masterpiece though. Maybe a nice tree in about 5 years with a nice initial styling...And maybe , who knows, in 20 years, it could become a low grade masterpiece...

Rob
 

Vance Wood

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Interesting caveat here: If this tree were in a comercial nursery, as it is in the picutre, odds are you might be able to get it by dumpster diving. Goes to show you that sometimes it depends on subjective perception of value not common to all and not objective reasoning recognized in general. It is said that one man's trash is another man's treasure, but Sigmund Fraud said sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, in this case trash is trash.
 

R_F

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Well....It's no masterpiece. But I know a few on here that could do something with that trunk. I wouldn't pay more than $50 for it...but it does have potential.
 

Vance Wood

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Well....It's no masterpiece. But I know a few on here that could do something with that trunk. I wouldn't pay more than $50 for it...but it does have potential.

That's the whole point Ryan. In my way of looking at things is one of value. I would in no way touch this tree for more than $50, as you have pointed out. At that price it is a good value. However; this tree is being sold as a masterpiece bonsai at ten times that amount virtually, and as such it turns into crap. The term masterpiece is being thrown around like a hatchet these days with material like this and if you analyze the term it is clearly false. A masterpiece is a work of art executed by a recognized master. This tree is a disaster executed by a whole lot of bad care allowing the tree to become weak and damaged.
 

Mortalis

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Well I guess all of my trees are exhibition grade masterpieces. Seriously.. This guy is sure to fool someone.. Makes me want to buy his $10 juniper so I can leave feedback on his a$$..
 

october

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Just another thing that will mislead and represent the art of bonsai even further.......and to think... I believe that some of the general public may have been seeing that mallsai, the other misrepresentative form, are nothing like the true art......lol.........

It seems that whenever you speak of bonsai... Mallsai comes to the minds of so many and you hear the classic story.. Either they or a friend of theirs, had a bonsai (mallsai) and it died. Whenever I hear these things, I always explain, a very short explanantion, of why mallsai are, in now way, representive of what the true art of bonsai is about. The explanation is short becasue I realize that some people do not see the amount of omnipotent beauty in bonsai that I do. Sometimes I find myself talking about it quite a bit. I am mindful that others may not enjoy it like I do. You are reminded of this fact when you show someone a pic of a 200 year old masterpiece that is worth like $50,000-$100,000 and you get a reply of. Oh, thats nice...... In a casual, almost patronizing manner.

Rob
 

R_F

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The term masterpiece is being thrown around like a hatchet these days with material like this and if you analyze the term it is clearly false.

You are absolutely correct about that! About 2 months ago I was surfing the bonsai listings on ebay....I saw a similar listing to this one ( It was 1 of many I have seen over the years). I have to admit that unfortunately this poor soul that listed the tree got an email from me that contained my pent up frustration towards him and others who had made similar listings. The guy actually replied and said I didn't have to be rude:rolleyes:(I told him he should be ashamed for trying to sell $25 material for $300) but he would reduce the price. Maybe he thought I wanted to buy?! That was the furthest thing from my mind I assure you.
 

milehigh_7

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Would it be fair to say that this tree and mallsai are as far from bonsai as a 'velvet Elvis' purchased from a roadside vendor is from a Monet?

Velvet Elvis
artwork_velvetelvis_1jpg.jpg



Monet:

claude-monet-paintings-1861-1874-17.jpg
 

Attila Soos

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I wonder what kind of juniper is it. If, God forbid, it is an Itoigawa, it could be worth a lot of money. But chances are, it is not.

But in any case, it may have the potential for an exceptionally good literati - in the right hands, of course.

The trunk seems to be very interesting, so I am not sure that I would sell it for $50. It may be worth a lot more....not that I am defending it's "masterpiece" status, which is a very poor choice of word in this case.
 
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october

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Very, very good analogy milehigh_7....I have always been partial to Van Gogh myself....


Rob
 

JasonG

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I agree it isn't a masterpeice but the reality is that on ebay that word is too often used as a marketing ploy. In regards to the tree, yes it is way over priced but there is a killer tree in there, masterpiece?No, but way better than most of you guys are giving it credit for.....
 

Attila Soos

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... masterpiece?No, but way better than most of you guys are giving it credit for.....

I agree. Once the tree is nurtured back to health (which may take a couple of years), it could become top-notch material. However, it is definitely not a beginner's material. It needs someone who can think in- and out of the box, and can break, bend, and play with the "rules" as he pleases.
 
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milehigh_7

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I am a firm believer that the master's eye can see what others cannot. I would love to see one of you more talented/experienced folk work with it just to show what can be done. I would learn much from something like that.
 
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I agree that this little ragged juniper has a very nice tree inside it. Simplify the deadwood, make it healthy, and graft shinpaku if you need to, but I don't think it would need it. It reminds me of freshly collected yamadori material and should be treated as such. I don't think it's excessively overpriced if it is itoigawa. If it's some common species, of course it is.

Masterpiece? not. Real potential? Yes!
 
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