American Painted Pot Motifs

[thams]

I've been doing a fair amount of research about painted bonsai pots recently. The Japanese have some similar reoccurring themes in their painted works - there's some really beautiful landscapes and fantastic depictions of dragons. My ultimate goal is to produce painted pots in a similar style, but with distinctly American themes. What American traditions and lore would you all be interested in seeing? Stories and scenery surrounding the Appalachian mountains have always fascinated me. Grassland scenes with quail and pheasants would be interesting as well. Thoughts?

 

[just.wing.it]

Interesting idea, cool idea!

I think of grasslands as well, with faint mountain ridges in the background...animal or two, as you said a pheasant...maybe a stoic deer....or a majestic eagle....


Do one with a Sasquatch running through the Appalachian forest ...

 

[StoneCloud]

Waterfalls!!!!!!

Canyons!!!!!

 

[Ironbeaver]

Log cabins, American folklore (Paul Bunyan?, headless horseman, Jersey Devil) references to historical people (Jean Lafitte, David Crocket) buildings or vehicles (Alamo, Bonhomme Richard)

 

[thams]

I like all these ideas! Nick Lenz's painted pieces are a decent representation of Americana, if a little tongue in cheek. I thought about researching vintage American dinnerware patterns to decorate the windows, rims, and feet of the pots as well. Some of the patterns could look really cool in the right context.

 

[Starfox]

Fields of Bison. Coyotes and yeah definitely a squatch or 3.

I don't know but it could be worth hitting up some Native American artists for a collaboration too.

I have had similar thoughts but with an Aussie theme.

 

[Vance Wood]

Interesting idea, cool idea!

I think of grasslands as well, with faint mountain ridges in the background...animal or two, as you said a pheasant...maybe a stoic deer....or a majestic eagle....


Do one with a Sasquatch running through the Appalachian forest ...

Or a very angry and hungry Grizzely Bear chasing you through an Alder thicket in Alaska.

 

[Anthony]

Good Curio Cabinet ideas.
Bonsai uses plain pots, because it is all about the tree.

Pottery as described by Thams is more about Art or What is called, High Craft.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adelaïde_Alsop_Robineau

Glorious - http://syracusethenandnow.org/Nghbrhds/Strathmore/ScarabVase.jpg

Below Yi Xing --------- what tree ?
Good Day
Anthony

What could you put in it and see the tree?

 

[M. Frary]

Me lurking around a tree at Bigfoot.

 

[just.wing.it]

Me lurking around a tree at Bigfoot.

Gojira eating Bigfoots...popping em like tic-tacs..

 

[thams]

Good Curio Cabinet ideas.
Bonsai uses plain pots, because it is all about the tree.

Pottery as described by Thams is more about Art or What is called, High Craft.

What about for a shohin display? I agree that painted pots aren't in general as complimentary as plain pots, but they do serve a specific function in formal display. I can respect your preference for the plain. I think in many ways it's more difficult to produce plain pottery with presence than a flashy one.

 

[sorce]

Yeah....the Japanese didn't exactly wipe out and drag along with them, to further destroy and wipe out...multiple civilizations.

Lol...got sidetracked but there's that....

with presence

I think the appropriate term would be "anti-presence"...
Or.
Presence without presence.

But yeah....

Fuck paying much homage to killers and rapists......
Our culture doesn't have much worth celebrating...

Hence...the pot Clyde has.

We can be proud that we created a new Idea that would work if the idea itself didn't lead to our heads in our asses....but it did, so the Idea was shit to begin with.

But I'm a true patriot.

Not a Fucking Fox taught ignorant assclown!

We should be up in arms due to the fact that sick children, who can not move to Colorado....just can't get legal help for their seizures.

Fucking Backwards!

That IS NOT WHAT THIS COUNTRY IS ABOUT.

Whats worth putting on a pot.?

Nick Lenz already spoke it all with the dude peeing on the tree....
Of course....
There IS something behind that I'm sure...

Sorce

 

[bonsaidave]

Sasquatch pots would be the business! Plus those Sasquatch Hunter are always in the woods. Maybe they can scout for good yamadori during the Sasquatch hunts.

Bison/Buffalo for sure.

Red White and Blue pot for Ol'Glory

I'm in Texas so maybe a "Come and Take It" with a bonsai and an M16A1

?

 

[thams]

Fuck paying much homage to killers and rapists......
Our culture doesn't have much worth celebrating...

Whats worth putting on a pot.?

Nick Lenz already spoke it all with the dude peeing on the tree....
Of course....
There IS something behind that I'm sure...

Such a juxtaposition to your typical outlook. There is plenty worth celebrating as much as there is worth loathing.

Why not celebrate the bounty of nature we have here in the US? We DO have a rich tradition of working the land and have diverse landscapes worth capturing. Surely you can see the peacefulness of translating this into a pottery motif. Don't conflate politics and the awfulness of individuals caught up in it with reality.

 

[sorce]

Such a juxtaposition to your typical outlook. There is plenty worth celebrating as much as there is worth loathing.

Why not celebrate the bounty of nature we have here in the US? We DO have a rich tradition of working the land and have diverse landscapes worth capturing. Surely you can see the peacefulness of translating this into a pottery motif. Don't conflate politics and the awfulness of individuals caught up in it with reality.

Yes!

Please forgive my....potted rage!

I can't help but be disgusted that we have ruined, SEE IT, but continue to ruin all that IS beautiful.

Hmmmm...

More but later....

Sorce

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I've been doing a fair amount of research about painted bonsai pots recently. The Japanese have some similar reoccurring themes in their painted works - there's some really beautiful landscapes and fantastic depictions of dragons. My ultimate goal is to produce painted pots in a similar style, but with distinctly American themes. What American traditions and lore would you all be interested in seeing? Stories and scenery surrounding the Appalachian mountains have always fascinated me. Grassland scenes with quail and pheasants would be interesting as well. Thoughts?

There are so many amazing choices... thematically, I love Maxfield Parrish:





Frederick Remington:




And N.C. Wyeth:

 

[Bonsai Nut]

What are unique "American" thematic images? A list...

Log cabins
Indians
Canoes
Bison
Western bluffs / canyons
Longhorn cattle
Cowboys
Barns
Dairy cattle
Corn

 

[Ironbeaver]

What are unique "American" thematic images? A list...

Log cabins
Indians
Canoes
Bison
Western bluffs / canyons
Longhorn cattle
Cowboys
Barns
Dairy cattle
Corn

New England lighthouses
Alligators
Campers/RVs
Nantucket scrimshaw

 

[sorce]

Maybe this is going to be the "more" that is appropriate....

I listened to a dope ass version of Martin Luther Kings Jr's speech that recent weekend. A sick ass beat, I think a Sade track...

Anyway....
I listened to it with new ears......

See....the spirit in which it was taught, the way we hear it, leaves us, or at least me, with a feeling of Complete Past Tense.

"I had A Dream" but in the context, "had a dream and the shit didn't work"...at least that's the world I live in.

So for years, I knew it was important, knew you don't get assassinated if you are not feared, know evil men fear good men. I knew he was a good man, and this love should be further spread.

But with these new ears I realized ....

He actually had a dream, the kind you get while you're sleeping.

Anyway, it made me think about how it's true what KRS-1 says.
"We all hear that 'I had a dream,' speech a lot...but no where does it manifest but in Hip Hop."

But this is only true of the speech....

The Spirit of the speech...
love all men and women equal because ALL men and women will be better off in this environment...
(Research https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Forbes_Nash_Jr. for the Math that makes that TRUE)

Bonsai has this effect on us too.

Blinds People from evils.

Anyway, this is a pot that has a fucked up effect on me...and I won't share the rest until likes or otherwise tell me people are really reading and paying attention.

This Pot has a Song.

Too Soriginal....

And perfect too!

Are you ready for this?

Am I?

Sorce

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I won't share the rest until likes or otherwise tell me people are really reading and paying attention.

I have read it and am paying attention, but I didn't respond because I think my response would fork this thread and take it in a very different direction than what the OP intended. I was thinking on a somewhat superficial level of my favorite Japanese painted pots, and what images would take them from uniquely Japanese to "American".

The best bonsai has two levels of appreciation: literal and emotional. I was thinking of "literal" examples of paintings that have an emotional impact on me... The problem is that a literal interpretation of an image should be the same for everyone... but the emotional impact can be very, very different for each person. You were sharing a specific example of this... an emotional impact that people would never understand if they were looking at the pot literally.

Hope I am making sense