Chapter 56 Basic Aesthetics and Ideals of Bonsai
The essays up to now have focused more on practical horticultural matters. Here I focus on the artistry and aesthetics of bonsai. I admit at the outset that I am NOT a traditionalist. My thinking and sense of what is appropriate are strongly influenced by others who share a similar heterodox view. All I can do is tell you what I like, know, or have learned from others. I will never belittle the work of others who prefer more traditional bonsai, because that is what they find beautiful.
For this essay I have incorporated parts of Wikipedia’s article on bonsai aesthetics; the author of that entry has provided some very good insight into the thinking behind traditional styles.
56.1 Classical Bonsai Aesthetics Reflect Japanese Culture and History
Bonsai, Chinese penjing, Vietnamese hòn non bộ, and other regional variants share the desire to capture a feeling of nature in trees. Each of these traditions ALSO reflects the ideals of the culture, time, landscape and locally available species where they developed.
Comparison of Vietnamese hòn non bộ (1), and Japanese classical style white pine bonsai (2). Link to original image 1; original image 2
The minimalist aesthetics of classical bonsai are a direct product of Japan’s history, culture, and social norms from 1500 to 1950. Early Japanese trees were calles hachi no ki, meaning “bowl trees,” because stylists used deep pots similar to those used for penjing. Around 1800, a group of scholars first began codifying philosophical and cultural ideals in the distinctive minimalist style we think of as Japanese bonsai. These stylistic ideals continued to develop and mature in relative isolation for another 150 years or so. By the time Japanese artists began teaching bonsai to Westerners after World War II, it had passed through 4-5 generations of students who learned the art through a long apprenticeship, then in turn passed it on.
What are the aesthetic goals for traditional Japanese bonsai trees?
No trace of the artists. The tree should look as if sculpted by natural forces, not by human intervention. This is why wire should not be visible on the trunk when a tree is shown, and pruning scars should be in the back of the tree. Note I said artistS; most older bonsai have had multiple caretakers over more than one generation.
One of the biggest challenges is adapting the style to the tree, rather than forcing a style onto the tree. Forcing a tree to look a particular way will leave traces of the artist. Master stylists know that sometimes the rules need to be adapted or broken in order for a tree to have the greatest impact.
Visual balance overall, and proportion among the elements. The tree will not be overpowered by the pot or by other elements. The tree will be in a simple formal container that is shallow and relatively small compared to the tree. Except for the tree(s) and optional patches of moss or natural-looking rocks, there will be no other vegetation or objects in a bonsai container.
The tree itself will have a distinct “front” from which it is intended to be viewed. Branches will begin about one-third of the way up the trunk, and be continuous from there to the tip of the trunk (this guideline is specifically broken for the literati style). No major tree branch should cross the trunk when viewed from the tree’s “front.” All trees in a multi-tree bonsai planting will be of the same species.
Gravitas. Viewed as a whole the tree should invoke feelings of weight and age. Branch shape should reflect the weight of age, particularly in conifers, and branches may be shaped to tend downwards toward the tip in support of this practice. The trunk should taper significantly from base to top. Branch size should diminish from the base to the top of the tree. One of the ways to create a sense of age is to introduce deadwood, especially on conifers. Trees should have mature, heavy bark on all but the smallest terminal branches (a process called lignification.) Young trees tend to grow straight and send out branches in a symmetrical pattern. Older trees often have curved trunks and branches that suggest movement. Also, older trees have lost some of their limbs, particularly closer to the base. As a result they have an asymmetric silhouette. Proper branch placement is one of the main ways Japanese stylists build the illusion of age.
Strong nebari. The root buttress should contribute to the impression of age. The tree’s roots should be exposed at the base of the trunk and should flare wider than the trunk as they enter the ground. No visible root should cross another.
Miniaturization and leaf reduction. Each part of the composition contributes to the illusion of a large tree brought down to miniature size. The trunk may be a straight vertical shape or may be contorted in different directions over its length, but in styles where the tip of the tree is above the container, the tip should tilt slightly forward at the top (toward the viewer). The forward tilt reinforces the illusion of size. Foliage (leaves or needles) should be small and to scale with the tree and its branches. Branch ramification, particularly in deciduous trees, should increase towards the tip of each branch.
A clear story. The shape and placement of branches, angle of the trunk, etc., should contribute to the story of how a tree came to look a certain way.Bends in the branches and trunk of a tree help tell that tree’s story.
So where did these stylistic ideals originate?
56.1.1 Zen Buddhism
What we know as Zen Buddhism first came to Japan from China in the late 1200s and became popular in the 1300s. It emphasizes several philosophical concepts that found expression in bonsai styles and aesthetics.
One of the most important practices in zen buddhism is dhyāna: deep meditation aimed at increasing deep self-awareness and equanimity (accepting reality as it is without craving or aversion). By meditating on sounds, contradictory questions, and external objects (including natural and styled trees), Zen Buddhists aim to to cultivate these personal ideals, some of which are embodied by styled trees:
- Sati: mindfulness and awareness of reality in detail.
- Viriya: energy, determination, effort.
- Pīti: joy or rapture.
- Passaddhi: relaxation or tranquility of both body and mind.
- Samādhi: concentration; a calm, one-pointed state of mind, clear awareness.
56.1.2 Wabi-Sabi
Wabi-sabi is as central to Japanese aesthetic values as the Greek ideals of beauty and perfection are in western art. It is the Japanese aesthetic ideal/world view that accepts transience and imperfection in all things. Authentic beauty is imperfect, impermanent (nothing lasts), and incomplete (nothing is ever finished).
Andrew Juniper described it this way: “If an object or expression can bring about, within us, a sense of serene melancholy and a spiritual longing, then that object could be said to be wabi-sabi.”
Characteristics of the wabi-sabi aesthetic include asymmetry, roughness, simplicity, economy, austerity, modesty, intimacy, and appreciation of the deeply connected integrity of natural objects and processes.
56.1.3 Mono No Aware
Mono no aware literally translates as either “the pathos of things,” “an empathy toward things,” or “a sensitivity to ephemera.” It is the awareness of impermanence, a transient gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing as well as a longer, deeper gentle sadness about this state being the reality of life. It’s basically about being both saddened by and appreciative of transience – and also about the relationship between life and death.