The Mark of Beauty : Bonsai

By NHK Educational

The Mark of Beauty : NHK Educational

【Bonsai】PrologueOriginal Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama / Seikouen / Uchikutei

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu) named Maiko (Dancer)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Point 1 : Understanding the definition of bonsai

Bonsai is a recreation within a container of a natural landscape of living plants for the purpose of aesthetic appreciation. 

【Bonsai】The RootsNHK Educational

"Kasuga gongen genki (Miracles of the Kasuga Deity), volume 5" National Diet Library Digital Collections by Handcopy by Itabashi Tsuneo  Original by Takashina no TakakaneOriginal Source: National Diet Library Digital Collections

The tradition of bonsai came to Japan at the end of the Heian period, in the late 1100s. In Japan, as in China, it was popular to admire landscape scenery.

Yamato fuzoku joreishiki (Etiquette and Manners for Women) Collection of The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama by Yoshu ChikanobuOriginal Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

It was during the late nineteenth century, from the end of the Edo period to the Meiji period that the bonsai in its present form really took off. The impetus for this trend was the popularity of sencha (roasted green leaf tea) gatherings, during which the Chinese objects and decorations popular at the time would be displayed for the guests who were served steeped green tea. The potted plants used to decorate such rooms initiated today’s bonsai tradition.   As these potted plants grew increasingly refined for use in tea rooms, extraneous flowers and plants were omitted, leaving the tree as the central focus.

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

There are various nicknames for the different shapes of bonsai trees. The name Fukinagashi (Wind Blown) suggests a trunk leaning over as if being blown by a strong wind.

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu) named Hakushi no taki (White Thread Waterfall)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Kenkai (Suspended from a Cliff) is in a shape that represents a tree hanging over a steep cliff. 

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Yoseue (Potted Trees) represents a forest. 

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu) named Uzushio (Swirling Tide)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Point 2 : Appreciating age

To enjoy a bonsai is to get a taste of the past. Any tree that evokes a sense of age and dignity, regardless of its actual age, is said to have koshoku (aged patina). In particular, the white areas of dead wood are known as shari (literally, “relics”). This shari characteristic is one of the focuses of bonsai connoisseurship. 

【Bonsai】Shari(Relics)Original Source: Kimura Masahiko

Pinus parviflora (Five-needle pine, goyomatsu) named Higurashi (Daily Life)Original Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Higurashi (Daily Life) a bonsai tree that exemplifies the term koshoku (aged patina).  Over 450 years old, it is considered to be the finest bonsai tree in Japan.

Bonsai to Decorate the Tokonoma AlcoveOriginal Source: The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama

Point 3 : Decorating with bonsai

The appeal of bonsai is further highlighted when displayed within a traditional alcove (tokonoma) of a room. 

【Bonsai】Literati BonsaiOriginal Source: Kobayashi Fumiyuki, KAISHOKU MICHIBA

Credits: Story

Cooperation:
The Omiya Bonsai Art Museum, Saitama
Seikouen
Uchikutei
National Diet Library Digital Collections
Kimura Masahiko
Kobayashi Fumiyuki
KAISHOKU MICHIBA

Music by maigoishi

Supervised by
Maezaki Shinya, Associate Professor, Kyoto Women's University
M. Rinne, Kyoto National Museum

Produced by NHK Educational Corporation

©NHK2017

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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