The extraordinary artistry of pine trees fully reveals the beauty of nature

Work by He Zhixiong - Century-Old Chinese Pine Grand Champion

Pine! Extraordinary artistry that makes everyone love it beyond words

By Zhang Weijie

Pine! The spirit it represents is firmness and perseverance, unshakable willpower. Its tree form varies due to unique environmental and topographical conditions. The dominant type: majestic and imposing, a pillar holding up the sky, steady as Mount Tai. The expressive type: the proud bone of a scholar, standing alone in elegance, breaking free from the ordinary. The perilous type: overlooking a ten-thousand-fathom abyss, suspended on a single edge as if standing on the peak of sheer peril, sometimes turning against the wind in coiling dragon twists, the divine dragon showing its head but not its tail. Only a tree species with such varied transformations can make everyone love it so deeply beyond words, and only the pine can express such extraordinary artistry.

Work by Xie Wenhu - 2013 Chinese Pine Exhibition Grand Champion

Over the past more than twenty years of enjoying bonsai, I have personally come to understand many truths. First, I learned how to "calm the mind." In the process of cultivating and creating bonsai, one cannot rush; one must be calm and peaceful, otherwise haste makes waste. At best, one damages sinew and bone; at worst, no remains are left. Second, I learned "patience and waiting." In the process of bonsai cultivation, waiting is extremely important. From field cultivation to pot cultivation, the creative plan proceeds step by step, ranging from as short as ten years to as long as thirty or fifty years. All of this has made me realize that in the learning process of life, one must be humble, live slowly, and not advance rashly.

Work by Chen Wenhuan - 2010 Chinese Pine Exhibition Grand Champion

I personally feel deeply that growing bonsai and raising children have many similarities. In a child's growth process, one must instill love, care, patience, nutrition, and upbringing. Bonsai is the same. After it is cultivated, at the appropriate time it repays you, delighting your eyes and purifying your mind, ascending to elegance and achieving distinction.

Work by You Qingnan - 2009 Chinese Pine Exhibition Grand Champion

Work by Chen Wenhuan - 2008 Chinese Pine Exhibition Grand Champion

Work by Li Yicong - 2007 Chinese Pine Exhibition Grand Champion

Work by Zhou Wenhuang

Work by Zhuang Wenxian

Work by Yan Maolin

Work by Xie Zhencun

Work by Zhuang Wenmao

Work by Shen Zhenkun

Work by Zhan Qianguo

Work by Wang Shunxi

Work by Liu Pingyuan

Work by Yu Rongzong

Work by Liu Mingzong

Work by Lai Rongzhou

Work by Huang Sishan

Work by Luo Shikun

Work by He Zhixiong

Work by He Yongyu

Work by He Yongyu

Work by He Yongyu

Work by Chen Wenhuan

The works are selected from award-winning works of Chinese Pine Exhibitions over the years

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