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I'm not typically a fan of nursery material, but this little tree was well chosen for good movement in the trunk. There's lots of character there to work with. It's in good health with some good low growth, so to find the smallest bonsai in the material, I removed most of the growth on the tree. I want to continue to emphasize the movement by improving the deadwood and reducing the life line on this tree, but this is enough work for now. It is responding with lots of new growth.
The most natural effect for shaping deadwood is by lifting small bundles of fibers and peeling them slowly along the trunk. They follow the natural growth lines, thus emphasizing natural movement. This is far easier with freshly jinned material, since dry wood won't peel as easily. Dry wood can also be peeled like this if it is moistened first by wrapping with wet towels until the wood is fairly wet.
Following peeling, many artists will use a torch (or sandblasting) to weather the wood and remove the small threads that persist.
2 comments:
I think it's amazing that you can remove so much from a tree and have it continue to survive. Doesn't that sort of aggressive touch leave the tree in a state of shock?
Is the dead wood effect done to give the tree the appearance that it is much older than it really is? Looks kinda cool, if not rather post-tornado.
The tree needs to rest now, and put on strong new growth. The growing tips are very green and will be elongating soon. Doing this work without removing roots forces new growth as the tree seeks to reestablish equilibrium. I will wire it next February or March for its initial styling.
We carve the wood for that very reason. Peeling a jin or shari is only the first step. Aging it is absolutely essential to give the tree the impression of great age.
Chris
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