20:25 - 2006-05-09
FSOJ Week 33: The Mother Tree
FSOJ Week 33: The Mother Tree
All Nature's Mothers
Hold out their sheltering arms
The children grow strong
In honour of Mother's Day, which is coming up on Sunday, I decided my bonsai this week absolutely had to be a mother tree. Originally I wanted to do the large tree and one baby, but upon checking the notes, I found that bonsai convention for multiple trees discourages even number groupings. So I did a grouping of three.
Very hard to do effectively on a small ring, and even more difficult to photograph! It might work easier if it was a bracelet!
This incorporates the same leafing technique I used last week, only this time I followed the instructions more exactly and then attached the tree to the ring.
In terms of stem taper and proportion, this is one of the most successful bonsai I've made in this series so far.
I've also been working on an artist statement for this series. I find that writing an artist statement always helps me to clarify and focus, and the work benefits.
BONSAI
A new series of rings by Dianne Karg Baron.
The creation of bonsai is often viewed as a means of cultivating shin-zen-bi, the virtues of �truth, goodness and beauty�. Practitioners seek to express the intertwined relationship of humans and nature. Bonsai are said to be the living embodiment of �heaven and earth in one container�.
What appeals to me about bonsai is the focussed intent and use of intuition in developing the form. Just like the creation of jewellery, patience is required for bonsai; there can be no hurrying if aesthetic perfection is to be achieved.
I am studying the methods and philosophies used in creating bonsai, and interpreting them in precious metal wire and other materials. Though I start with a general idea of what I want the finished bonsai to look like, as it flows/grows out of the ring base, I listen to intuitive promptings to help shape the tree into its final form.
Bonsai are not useful. Their main function is to be artful. Similarly, these rings are less �useful� and �practical� than my previous work has been. They serve as adornment for the body, but also stand as separate, individual entities. From the outset, I design them to work as both jewellery and sculpture. While being worn, the hand forms an integral part of the bonsai�s landscape. When not being worn, each is displayed in a container, to encourage viewing and contemplation.
