March 23, 2015 - Arthur Joura lecture - "Naturalism and American Bonsai"

There is much conversation lately about American bonsai. This talk ranges from people who deny that such a thing exists, to people who talk as if the idea is something new and they just invented it.

Arthur Joura, bonsai curator of the North Carolina Arboretum, is certain that American bonsai exists because the public collection he manages is entirely American. It is American in its origins, its philosophy and its presentation. But Arthur does not think the concept of American bonsai is anything new. Rather, he believes it is an idea that originated a long time ago but is still in the process of being defined, and is in need of better understanding by the very audience that should be most attracted to it.

Another concept that stirs debate among those in the bonsai community is that of Naturalism. A good number of the bonsai people who reject Naturalism apparently do not understand what the term means. It is, however, completely definable and has existed as a concept in art for hundreds of years. Understanding the concept of Naturalism is worthwhile, according to Joura, because it has the potential to be a key for bringing into sharper focus the whole idea of American bonsai.

On the evening of Monday, March 23,  Joura visited the Puget Sound Bonsai Association to present an illustrated lecture on this subject, entitled "Naturalism and American Bonsai". This unique and entertaining presentation has been many years in the making. A subject that might at first glance seem dense was made clearly understandable, and illustrated throughout with high-quality imagery. Whatever your level of expertise, however many bonsai programs you had attended before, whoever you have studied with, this program showed you something different.

(WARNING: People with rigid minds should avoid this presentation! Side affects may include upset from having comfortable preconceptions challenged, dizziness from broadened horizons, and headaches from thinking about things previously taken for granted. Possibly also measurable expansion of the forehead.)

Joura has been bonsai curator at the North Carolina Arboretum since 1993. He was the last student of Yuji Yoshimura, and studied bonsai in Japan with Susumu Nakamura. He is well known and well traveled in bonsai circles in the eastern US, and has been a featured speaker at Brussel's Rendezvous, the International Bonsai Symposium, the Lone Star Bonsai Convention, the Potomac Bonsai Festival, and the 5th World Bonsai Convention. This visit to PSBA was Arthur's first foray into the west coast bonsai scene.