Sunday Times 2
The beauty of Bonsai
View(s):When the artistic forms of Bonsai are displayed at exhibitions, many enthusiastic viewers get a desire to try out creating a Bonsai. A beginner, could be little nervous of some of the techniques used, but in no time, one can gain confidence as he /she sees how the trees respond to the training.
What matters in a Bonsai, is the true quality of the specimen. It is the beauty of form, colour and texture. It is a fact that the beauty of the tree will improve with the length of time it had been trained as a Bonsai. But unless the basic form is of quality, ageing itself will not make it, a good Bonsai. But, you can keep on changing or modifying the structure or the form, if you desire to do so.
Many believe that the larger the Bonsai, the better it is, which is not true. It is also assumed that bigger Bonsai are more difficult to create, which also is not true. It can be argued that, a mini or “Mame” Bonsai will require more patience and skills to create and maintain, because same aesthetic standards have to be achieved with fewer and smaller elements.
The Sri Lanka Bonsai Association’s annual exhibition “Reflections 2016”will be held at Waters Edge, Battaramulla, today (9.30 a.m. to 8 p.m.) and tomorrow. (9.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m.) . A large collection of high quality Bonsai plants will be on display this year too. Demonstrations will be held at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. on both days.
- M.A. Premasiri