{"id":29526,"date":"2018-03-03T16:00:11","date_gmt":"2018-03-03T16:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/?p=29526"},"modified":"2025-01-06T16:15:39","modified_gmt":"2025-01-06T07:15:39","slug":"art-of-bonsai-in-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/blog\/art-of-bonsai-in-japan\/","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Bonsai in Japan and Its Roots in Japanese History"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bonsai<\/em> (\u76c6\u683d) is a beautiful art form in Japan that aims to blend horticultural skills with Japanese aesthetics. Its two kanji\u2014bon<\/em> (\u76c6) meaning basin or tray and sai<\/em> (\u88c1) meaning planting\u2014literally translate to \u201cplanted in a basin\u201d or container.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve ever seen these \u201cmini-trees,\u201d you might be surprised to hear about the time it takes to cultivate and carefully create these masterpieces (sometimes hundreds of years!). Here\u2019s an even bigger surprise: a bonsai tree isn\u2019t a genetic miniature, it\u2019s exactly the same as its brothers and sisters out in the forest! Here are even more facts about the art of bonsai<\/strong> in Japan.<\/p>\n

\"bonsai<\/h2>\n

Bonsai\u2019s ancient history<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bonsai\u2019s purpose is to evoke reflection on the viewer\u2019s part and ingenuity on the grower\u2019s part. It originates from the ancient Chinese tradition<\/strong> of penjing<\/em>, or penzai<\/em>. In the 6th century, Japanese Imperial and Buddhist students visited China and began to bring back goods, including plant-filled containers. Japan\u2019s Zen Buddhism further shaped these containers by taking away added figurines and items which weren\u2019t essential to its minimalist teachings.<\/p>\n

It was around the 14th century that Bonsai tree cultivation began to enter mainstream culture. In 1383, a play written by Zeami Motokiyo depicted a poor samurai who burned his last remaining bonsai in order to accommodate a traveling monk. It quickly gained popularity, and the rest became history.<\/p>\n

Bonsai is so well preserved and cherished that the oldest living bonsai tree\u2014considered a National Treasure of Japan and currently in the Tokyo Imperial Palace collection\u2014is over 500\u00a0years old!<\/p>\n

After World War II, Japan\u2019s culture and ideas were made more accessible, and thus the art of bonsai became increasingly popular in the world. There are now over 1,200 books on bonsai in over 26 languages and 90 countries. That\u2019s a lot of bonsai. It\u2019s not hard to see why, though. Walking around a bonsai tree and taking a look at how carefully each pine needle or branch has been grown feels just like standing in awe and inspecting every speck of paint in a classic painting.<\/p>\n

\"Bonsai<\/h2>\n

Art and aesthetics<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bonsai trees begin their lives from a source material, a plant that the grower aims to train into bonsai form<\/strong>. Seeds are rarely used because they would take far too much time, and so to keep it reasonable, creators usually propagate by cutting a piece from a tree they\u2019d like to use. This also helps give bonsai trees their old and weathered appearance. From there, through the process of trimming, pruning, wiring and clamping branches, and grafting new material, artists shape their work.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s interesting about the art of bonsai in Japan is seeing how these trees symbolize many of Japan\u2019s cultural characteristics. If you\u2019re interested in Japanese culture, language, food, and festivals are amazing ways to see what Japan is all about; but these trees show the influence of Zen Buddhism and Wabi-sabi<\/em> (\u4f98\u5bc2).<\/p>\n

Wabi-sabi<\/strong> is an interesting concept. My Japanese friends explain it as a sort of all-encompassing sense in Japanese art that emphasizes quiet simplicity and subdued refinement. It\u2019s a very beautiful look into the Japanese mentality. Wabi-sabi is in pottery, art, tools, even conversation.<\/p>\n

As the bonsai tree grows, trainers aim to foster a mature appearance all the while keeping the tree miniature, watching the proportions to mimic a fully grown tree, asymmetry\u2014as bonsai aesthetics discourage symmetry, and a concerted effort to leave no trace of the artist.<\/p>\n

\"Omiya<\/h2>\n

Bonsai in Japan today\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

For those interested in having a look at these carefully crafted creations, take a tour through Japan\u2019s first publicly run Omiya Bonsai Village<\/strong> in Saitama. There are currently five gardens, some running since the 1800s, and a museum as well. Tokyo has the Shunka-en Bonsai Garden, run by Bonsai Master Kunio Kobayashi.<\/p>\n

Every year, Japan holds its premier Kokufu Bonsai Exhibition, where professionals present their most beautiful works for anyone to come and see. If that sounds a little intimidating, there is a bonsai festival in Omiya from May 3rd to May 5th. Come for a casual stroll and take in the sights and sounds of exhibitions and over 120 shops selling bonsai trees and goods.<\/p>\n

Bonsai trees are a glimpse into a deep and vibrant side of Japan that goes way back, past the sphere of modern society. Wabi-sabi can be found in the trees, but also in Ikebana (flower arrangement), Origami<\/a>, and Sad\u014d (tea ceremony). For those interested in witnessing the art of bonsai in Japan, it really is a great way to gain a fuller understanding of Japanese society.<\/p>\n

For more information about Japanese culture keep following our Go! Go! Nihon blog.<\/a><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bonsai (\u76c6\u683d) is a beautiful art form in Japan that aims to blend horticultural skills with Japanese aesthetics. Its two kanji\u2014bon (\u76c6) meaning basin or tray and sai (\u88c1) meaning planting\u2014literally translate to \u201cplanted in a basin\u201d or container. If you\u2019ve ever seen these \u201cmini-trees,\u201d you might be surprised to hear about the time it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":117,"featured_media":29546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[400],"tags":[657,669,683],"class_list":["post-29526","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japanese-culture","tag-art","tag-nature","tag-tradition"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29526","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/117"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29526"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29526\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}