Exhibition, inspiration or intimidation

[Waltron]

When visiting an exhibit (given the context), I want to see works of the highest possible standard.

[Isitangus]

I agree this is a tough topic. I think Jase has made some very good and valid points, and i have to say i have the same morals when it comes to display critically upon myself also.

Yes it is true a club environent and community is for the progression and building of bonsai as a whole and personally for those involved, its a community in which should be all inclusive.
Shows and exhibitions are though, and could be said to be, pinnacles of presentation as they are a chance to show your work, an opportunity to present.

To put it simply in the form of an analogy, would you show a half completed Painting in an Art prize or exhibition? or would you complete that painting and show it when you are truly ready to present what it is you have pursued and perceived?

I'm not sure that's the correct analogy here, I think the more correct analogy would be would an amature artist exhibit their paintings during a show? Some won't and some will, but I think everyone has the right them forward for judging if they want to.
We all like to be proud of our work, even if it is still "in progress".
I also don't think that having beginner trees in a show diminishes the quality of the other trees.
Our club has a beginners section and has always asked me and other beginners to exhibit trees, I've never felt like mine were worthy even as a beginner tree so I've never put them in. This year I will have two trees in though and even then am apprehensive!

Don't forget the Campbelltown show is this weekend, we will have beginners section so come along to the free show!



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[peterb]

Hi All
THis is just my opinion, I don't think I would want beginners trees displayed alongside the show worthy trees . When i go to a show, I go to see the best there is. However I like the idea of a section set aside for beginners trees , i consider myself very much a beginner and would like to display a tree or two but having very high self imposed standards on myself would probably never consider my trees worthy of exhibition. So in a very long winded way what I'm trying to say is it would be good for an area to be set aside for beginners trees

[JaseH]

IMO there is a role for local clubs to pander more to the beginner or those with a less serious interest in the hobby, and most are already doing this. But with a lack of a more prestigious state or national exhibit - there is an even greater need I feel to have a really high class club exhibit - and being the "Victorian" club I'd like to think if any exhibit is the cream of the crop, for Victoria at least, it should be this one! To step back on quality is a step back for the advancement of the art IMO.

Unless we want to create an actual independently ran state exhibit?

[Boics]

Being a regular at the BSV show I think the format is fine. I would encourage some smaller "high quality " specimens as a compromise?

I also think you could obtain a clear distinction via a beginners area upstairs in the lobby?

Then one can wander downstairs to the business end!

[Jarad]

Displays could be accompanied with a small pictorial history to show the trees development. Adding dates would also help give us beginners an idea of the time it takes to develop a show tree.

The hardest thing for me to get used to was how long it actually took to develop a tree.

[Jeff]

Great question Gerard,

Perhaps it is worth taking a step backwards and asking yourself (as a club) what are you trying to accomplish. If the goal is to educate and attract the general public to the art form then I would offer only the best specimens. When people walk through the National gallery and see a Monet or Jeffrey Smart painting, they don’t go home and expect to paint like that and there is no ‘beginners section’. If bonsai artist are not willing to treat their craft as an art form, why should the general public?
The question whether or not to involve beginners trees is a good question however I think there are other ways to improve the overall quality of the exhibitions.
1. The Venue – I have been to many shows over the years that have been filled with excellent examples of bonsai. All of the specimens ranged from very good to excellent however when I entered the exhibition, all I noticed were the basketball hoops. It’s a shame. Would paintings or sculptures of this quality be presented in this manner? No. I feel like it is a lack of respect to the art form and to the artist. If Bonsai is to grow, we cannot present it as some kind of horticultural sideshow. Perhaps it is time to move away from the scout halls and gymnasiums of the suburbs and consider appropriate venues to display art.
2. Marketing - Look for ways to promote shows outside of the box. Universities, art students, designers, architects. Not bonsai enthusiasts. That is a very small crowd and they should know. When we put on a show, our goal is to fill the venue with people who have never experienced high quality bonsai before. It’s great to see our clients and club members but the exhibition is for the public.
3. Stop charging entry. Bonsai is very young in this country. If the goal is to help the art form grow, it seems short sighted to ask for money to see non-professional bonsai when you can see Andy Warhol or Sidney Nolan paintings free at museums in the city. The money will come from the memberships.

All bonsai artist should remind themselves that anyone can buy a mature, advanced bonsai one week and put it a show the next week. It means nothing. Bonsai is a journey that you should be happy to be on. Avoid feeling intimidated by those who have practiced the art form longer or who own advanced collections. What you will always own are your compositions and ideas. That’s what’s important. Find the person in club who is making the most out of the least and look to them for inspiration and leadership.
Here are a few shots from the ‘Impressions of Japan’ exhibition we put on last weekend and a story by the Sydney publication, ‘The Planthunter”. The results were very impressive. Thank you for anyone who took the time to check it out. A special thanks to members of the New Zealand club that travelled especially for the show.

https://www.facebook.com/chojo.featuretrees

http://theplanthunter.com.au/people/pro ... ure-trees/

Jeff Barry

[treeman]

IMO there is a role for local clubs to pander more to the beginner or those with a less serious interest in the hobby, and most are already doing this. But with a lack of a more prestigious state or national exhibit - there is an even greater need I feel to have a really high class club exhibit - and being the "Victorian" club I'd like to think if any exhibit is the cream of the crop, for Victoria at least, it should be this one! To step back on quality is a step back for the advancement of the art IMO.

Unless we want to create an actual independently ran state exhibit?

I completely agree Jase. There should be one premier bonsai exhibition in every state. In Victoria, I think it should be held by the BSV. One show for the best of the best. There are plenty of shows held to cater for the less developed or lesser quality trees. But in my opinion we should have an exhibition to which people who want to see the apex of the art (in this state at least) can turn. When you think about it, there really is no option if we want to keep pace with the Europe and Japan. Sooner or later it must happen. Of course if that's not a high prioriy of the majority of enthusiasts then there is no need to take it further. It would require quite some thought and a selection committee to make the choices. And therein lies the difficulty. Who is going to say ''your tree didn't make it''? But really it's the only way we will elevate the appreciation of the art to the wider community AND also hopefully inspire growers to greater and greater standards.
There are enough good trees existing now to make a start. The only requirment is the will.
One important point though is that in Melbourne, it should take place during late August/early September period (at the latest) when the majority of the trees grown here are at there best. Displaying a beautiful pine with new candles or a deciduous tree with soft spring shoots is a big no no! Ideally the evergreens would be dormant and the decdiuous trees bare

[longd_au]

I am a newbie and I go to shows to see the best of the best. Unless it is for sale as pre-bonsai, I walk pass trees that does not appeal to me, and spend hours
analyzing those that looks amazing.

I don't understand the reason for displaying newbie trees when we all should know that all amazing Bonsai were once, just a twig.
I am here to see the end result and use it as inspiration for my own goals.

On the other hand, if it is a club display, then I think it makes sense to allow members to show their work. However for me, if I see a club display dominated
by average trees, I would be turned off to join that club thinking there is nothing to learn from these people or their standard is too low for me.

I may never be able to create a Bonsai worthy for show, but I will die trying.

I would not mix newbie trees in a show as it confuse the standard.
I would be interested in an area displaying bonsai that are well on their way to being great but will mark it clearly as that.

Just my

[Matt S]

Gerard - you've started an interesting discussion. As you've stated, it all comes down to the goals of your exhibition.

I'm for having a beginners section as long as it's kept quite separate from the main display. To me a beginners display shows that the club is in a healthy state and is looking after the less experienced members. It's an opportunity to see how the beginners are going and for the general public it's a way to see the earlier steps in the creation of a bonsai. Before I joined the club I remember seeing the annual show and I was inspired by the advanced trees, but I also looked carefully at the novice section and thought "I could do that".

For my club the exhibition is seen as an opportunity to get new members and we always see a half dozen new faces at the next meeting. I believe that the success of our club is based on the steady trickle of new members we get every year and the novice section is an important part of that. We also have a prize for the best Novice tree to encourage entries.

The main exhibition can be tricky too. If we chose the absolute best trees from the club we could probably fill the space with trees from a handful of the more talented members but in the interests of inclusion we don't reject any trees (plus we don't want to have the same trees every year). So far this approach seems to work and the attendances are strong.

Matt.

[peterb]

Hey Matt
I believe you've hit the mark. I think even at the top level shows there should be a section set aside for the novice. This will inspire the novices to aspire to reach the top levels and also encourage the public that we are trying to draw through the doors, to attempt to grow bonsai because they can see where the top level stuff started out.
peterb

[treeman]

I think even at the top level shows there should be a section set aside for the novice. This will inspire the novices to aspire to reach the top levels

I don't know if I agree with this. Top level shows are not the place for anything sub-standard. We don't exhibit art from the local painters club along side Picasso. I think what inspires most people (me included) is viewing masterpieces. Not that we have an oversupply of masterpeices yet but we should show the best we have and the masterpiece will eventually come by sheer self determination to achieve them.
There are hobbyists and there are serious practitioners. This would be an exhibition for the latter.

[Pearcy001]

I've only been actively involved in my own Bonsai journey for 9 months now. Before I started it was the top shelf amazing and extremely advanced trees that made me want to get involved.

Members may be keen to show a tree they have been working on, but unfortunately for me personally these are not the trees that inspired me to get into the hobby as Joe blow walking past, as they give you nothing to strive for nor did they inspire me.

I'd be more impressed if there was a bowl of seeds sitting next to the tree, so I could see how it originally began showing how something so excellent had started from something so simple.

Now that I'm into the hobby, I'd be more turned off returning to an exhibition if there was a beginner's section as I know they just look like mine at home and don't give me anything to strive for.

If it was a car club trying to attract the attention of the general public, Who would want to look at a half restored luxury car when theirs a mint condition Shelby Cobra sitting next to it?

Just my personal opinion's for the chat.

Cheers,
Pearcy.

[longd_au]

Before reading this post, my personal habit has been to stop at great Bonsai and walk pass average looking ones.
I know every tree is someone's special tree and lots of effort has been put into it.

Just that in a show, I want to see inspirational material.

I would never judge a club based on the material they display. But I judge them based on the attitude they have towards learning and teaching/sharing.
But I go to shows to see what I aim for and maybe never get there in this lifetime.

[cre8ivbonsai]

Hi all, I'm a bit of a newby (actually, I think this may be my first post) & recently attended the Waverly Bonsai clubs show. Not sure they had any 'beginners' trees on display however they did have demonstrations in a separate area for beginners & I found this very interesting, I got a lot more out of that than simply seeing beginners trees.

Hi Daniel welcome to Ausbonsai I am glad you enjoyed the Waverley show and yes, we had bonsai on display from all levels, including novice

Waverley has a general policy encouraging member inclusion and participation in all club activities, including the show. Rather than 'pulling down' the quality, this year our show was the best Waverley show I've seen, due in part to members gaining more understanding of how to display and present their bonsai for show (we've had specific demonstrators on this topic at club nights) whether novice or experienced. Of course, we have minimum standards that apply to all: must have some styling work done, must be in a ceramic bonsai pot, must be trimmed and free of weeds, pests and disease. But, in general members made more of an effort, we had nearly half of all the bonsai (every level) at our show presented on stands, and this really raised the calibre overall, especially when compared to just a couple of years ago I could cound the number of stands on hand (where even excellent quality bonsai were simply just placed on a table. I think novices were encouraged to reach for higher standards of presentation through knowledge and encouragement, and their skill level will follow accordingly – probably at a faster rate considering a boost in confidence and achievement.

I have seen many BSV shows, and always admire the bonsai on show, as long as they are not the same ones as the year before.

So, different clubs offer differing styles to attract, support and keep their membership base. They present shows differently, promote differently, and present different formats for regular club nights. Many people are members of multiple clubs for that very reason. But ALL of this revolves around membership, without members you don't have a club, and without a club ... no show. (not saying BSV is any danger folding though, but shows don't just happen – they take a lot of planning and effort from real people).

Gerard, my short answer is "What do you're members want?"

Interesting to observe very generally that those in clubs are more supportive of novice participation, than those who are not in a club are more wanting to rock up one day a year to see "the best"

All the best for the BSV show Gerard