Years of careful craft go into the creation of Bonsai trees - the miniature, living artworks that mimic the shape of full-size trees. In fact, bonsai has been practised in Japan for over 1000 years, becoming one of the most highly appreciated arts.

Bonsai developed from the classical Chinese art of Penjing, or the creation of miniature landscapes. Both these art forms provide entertainment for their creators and objects of contemplation for their viewers.

Bonsai trees of varying sizes and styles have been used to decorate livings rooms, studies, gardens, and palaces. They're held on a par with calligraphy, paintings, and classical music. But how exactly do you train a pear, or a peach, or a pine tree to grow barely two feet tall?

The process begins with a suitable source; usually a cutting or small sapling of any woody-stemmed perennial. The most popular are fruit and pine trees native to the landscape of Japan: peaches, apples, elms, juniper, conifer, and spruce.

The key to stunting the plant's growth is a small pot, often with only a few centimetres of soil. The roots and leaves of the plant are trimmed with great care, and over time the tree adapts to its tiny home.

It's not just about creating any old small plant, though. Bonsai requires a keen eye and a sense of aesthetics. The aim is to create a pleasing scene in which the artist's intervention is hidden. It should appear entirely natural, even if it's in miniature form.

Ingenious tricks are used to create the impression of gnarled, twisted trunks, as in this tree. Copper wires and clamps can guide branches and pin them in place, all in order to create a convincing impression of an aged tree.

After years of growth, the result is a beautiful living sculpture. Treated well, bonsai trees can live to be just as old as full-size trees. In fact, there are a handful of trees that are proven to be almost 1000 years old.

Just as certain paintings and sculptures are internationally famous, so are some bonsai trees. This tree is named Higurashi, or 'Daily Life'. It exemplifies the koshoku, or 'aged patina' style. At over 450 years old, it is considered to be the finest bonsai tree in Japan.

There are various names for the different shapes of bonsai trees. Fukinagashi, 'Wind Blown', suggests a trunk leaning over as if being blown by a strong wind, as seen in this bonsai pinus parviflora.

The white areas of dead wood are known as shari, literally, 'relics'. The degree of shari is one of the central concerns of bonsai connoisseurship. This tree, named Uzushio, 'Swirling Tide', is a particularly prized example.

Depicting a busy boulevard on a snowy morning, this 1897 work by Camille Pissarro was painted from his room in the Hôtel de Russie. Heavily influenced by some of Manet’s earlier urban works, the painting is an example of Pissarro’s short brushwork, used to capture the movement and dynamism of the busy street scene.

Abstract vertical shapes represent the crowds parading up and down the boulevard, with the carriages passing through the slushy snow on both sides of the street. Can you guess the city?

The Boulevard Montmartre on a Winter Morning by Camille Pissarro. The painting was one of a series the artist made from this exact spot, something he thought might appeal to dealers at the time. Zoom in and explore for yourself, here.

One of a series of paintings by the artist from his 1908 visit to the city, this is generally regarded by critics as showing Monet at the peak of his powers. He was staying at the Palazza Barbaro at the invitation of Mary Young Hunter and painted this scene from that viewpoint.

The painting captures the shifting appearance of the city caused by the effects of the water, using the mooring poles to counterbalance the buildings on the right of the canvas. But which city is it?

It's Le Grand Canal by Claud Monet, painted in the famous lagoon-city of Venice. Monet, however, is arguably more interested in capturing the light reflecting on the water than the architectural beauty of the city itself.

Edward Hoppers 1942 painting, Night Hawks, shows people in a late night diner as viewed through the large glass window of the building. The light from inside illuminates the empty street and is believed to depict the loneliness of a city late at night.

It's one of the most recognizable paintings in American art, the diner itself was imagined, and not based on a real location, but Hopper said it was a composite of numerous burger bars, grocery stores and bakeries he knew from his home town. Which city was that?

It's New York City, of course. Hopper was a native of Nyack, New York, about 20 miles north of Manhattan, and spent time in Greenwich Village. Explore Night Hawks for yourself here.

Arriving in this city in 1746 and remaining there for nine years, Canaletto seemed to draw as much inspiration from his adopted home as he did from Rome or Venice in his native Italy.

Unlike many of his other paintings of the city, the view is more or less at ground level and shows off the large curve of the river as it winds through the city. It provides a panoramic view of the city, although it’s safe to say it looks a little different today. But do you know where it is?

The Thames from Somerset House Terrace towards Westminster by Canaletto is one of a number of London cityscapes produced by Canaletto during his time in the UK. This view is up the river from the terrace at Old Somerset House. 

During his stay in Litzlberg on the Attersee in the summer of 1907, Klimt discovered a magnificent poppy-filled meadow which he captured in the painting "Poppy Field." The meadow extends across almost the entire surface of the painting.

Narrow fruit trees protrude from the meadow, but their shapes merge so strongly with the grass and flowers that their outlines are barely visible to the observer.

It is only at the top of the picture where it is possible to get a view of the landscape in the background and a narrow strip of sky.

For the painting style of this magnificent meadow scene, Klimt made use of a technique that is unmistakably reminiscent of French pointillism. During this time, French and Belgian pointillism paintings were also very popular in Vienna.

Pointillist works could regularly be seen in the Vienna Secession around 1900. Paintings by Théo van Rysselberghe were exhibited in 1899, followed by works by Paul Signac in 1900. And the great impressionism exhibition of 1903 displayed several major works by Georges Seurat.

However, the pointillist spots of color by Klimt contribute less toward color synthesis, which is based on strict methodology. Klimt's specks and dots act more as a welcome means of achieving an ornamental effect.

For example, Klimt still depicts the large poppy and daisy flowers in the foreground in a very naturalistic way.

It is only when moving backward that they increasingly turn into specks of color. The shape of Klimt's color spots therefore differs according to the spatial distance of the motifs.

Want to explore some of the world's top contemporary art museums without leaving the house? Now you can with Street View!

Here's 8 museums to enjoy from New York to Bangkok...

1. National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon

When MMCA was first established in 1969 it was the only national art museum in Korea that had modern and contemporary art. The building was built to look like a traditional Korean fortress and also includes an outdoor sculpture park.

2. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

An awe-inspiring Fifth Avenue landmark designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the iconic corkscrew shape of the Guggenheim contains no carpeting or curtains to make sure visitors aren't distracted from the unbroken wave of art.

3. Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Bangkok

MOCA is home to the largest collection of modern painting and sculpture in Thailand. The building was specially designed with delicate jasmine patterns carved in the exterior to let in natural light.

4. Erarta, St. Petersburg

Erarta is the largest private museum of contemporary art in Russia. Its name combines the words 'era' and 'arta' which translates to mean 'the era of art'. The building it's housed in used to be a Soviet-era synthetic rubber research institute.

5. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, Colombia

The museum was founded after Father Rafael García-Herreros visited the house of a wealthy art collector and realized that the beautiful works were wasted, being limited to the sight of their owner. MAC now displays around 1,000 pieces of contemporary art for the public to enjoy.

6. Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto, Italy

This building was designed by architect Mario Botta and includes a large dome inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. A large part of MART's collection comprises of the Italian movement futurism.

7. The Grand Duke Jean Museum of Modern Art, Luxembourg City

Mudam is located at Fort Thungen and was designed by Pritzer Prize winning architect I. M. Pei. Its permanent collection includes work by Andy Warhol, Bruce Nauman, and Julian Schnabel.