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Sharimiki “Deadwood” wire tree sculptures
I have made many sculptures that contain elements of Deadwood. I typically represent this with a thicker gauge aluminium wire or with drift wood. In nature sharimiki (the traditional term for Deadwood) occurs when portions of a natural tree are stressed. This stressor could be grazing from: wild animals that strip the bark; extreme frost/snow or exposure to the elements or a lightening strike to the tree. If the Deadwood is on the trunk it is called “Shari” and if it is on a branch it is called “Jin”. If you search on the homepage for these terms you can see some wire tree sculptures containing these beautiful Deadwood elements.…
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Cascade Trees
Cascade trees are a style of wire tree sculpture that I really enjoy creating. They are elegant and flow so beautifully, really displaying a natural grace and calming presence. The traditional name for the cascade style is ‘kengai’ and they can be a semi-casde or full cascade. A semi-cascade bonsai tree typically has branches growing at a 45 degree angle away or curving around the base. The foliage usually only reached the top of the pot and should appear balanced and support its own weight. These trees depict a scenario where the tree is growing on a steep vertical slope,such as a cliff face, or near a river and the…
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Why the type of wire matters
In this post I am going to be explaining about choosing the correct craft wire for the job. Making a wire tree with any old wire can influence the production time and final result, changing the overall feel of the tree. I decided to do an experiment and make 2 trees, of very similar design but use 2 different thicknesses of wire. The first tree I made used 0.6mm wire and the second used 0.3mm wire. Now naturally I needed twice as much of the thinner wire to make the trunk roughly the same thickness but what I didn’t expect was the difference in time. The thicker wire tree took…
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What type of wire and why
So today I thought it would be worth discussing the types of wire I use to make my tree sculptures and why I use what I use. Before getting into the details it is worth noting that this is how I make my trees and there are many talented artists out there who use different thicknesses, material and have their own techniques. The main types of wire that used to make wire trees are as follows: Aluminium Copper Steel Aluminium Aluminium wire is typically used in welding and is a great source of wire as it is reasonably priced; however, these spools are also quite dirty and require cleaning before…
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How long does it take to make a wire tree sculpture
One of the most common questions I get from customers and other interested parties is how long does it take to make a wire tree sculpture. This really depends on what style of tree I am making and what size, below I will try and break it down and give some examples of size and time. Style 1- My traditional style comprises of making a wire tree with either no foliage, like deciduous tree over winter or with my 3d foliage pattern. Obviously there are different sizes of tree from 2-3″ (50-80mm) which are a relatively small tree all the way up to currently 8-10″ (210-250mm). Beyond this size,…
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Wire Tree Sculpture Tutorial- Step by Step Instructions
If you found this educational post useful please consider showing your support by gifting me a coffee; I would really appreciate it.
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How to make a wire bead tree – tutorial by Metal Bonsai
Check out these step by step instructions on how to make your own bead tree! Create your own handmade tree art in the comfort of your own home. Sit down with a nice cuppa and follow the steps in the wire bead tree tutorial to make something truly unique and beautiful. Introduction To make this wire crystal tree sculpture I visualised the tree I wanted to make before starting the assembly. You can get a piece of paper and draw a rough sketch of the wire bead tree you have in mind. You need to know how many branches your design requires so you can purchase the right amount of…
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Evolution
I have grown up working with miniatures (wargaming and display) and this has primed me for this recent endeavour. Even I struggle to believe I only started this adventure only 6 months ago when at a family meal and decided to play with the muselet from a bottle of champagne. Naturally the little metal cap would make a perfect “pot” to the “tree” I tried to create from the wire. (I wish I kept it!) So the seed was planted and a few days later I purchased some galvanised steel wire, now if you don’t know this stuff is, it’s tough and sharp when cut. After nearly killing myself with…
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Inspirational Artists- Alarik Greenland
Alarik Greenland is an amazing wire sculptor with a style that take his trees to the next level. Built out of wire, Alarik’s trees have a natural looks to them with very organic style roots, moving up to the foliage his trees are covered with thousands of glass leaves. Each leaf is individually threaded and an entire tree can take a month to complete. Just when you think his work cannot get any better, Alarik sources is basing material of driftwood from the riverbed in his local area in Devon. He dives under the water and looks for a piece of wood which could be a couple of hundreds of…
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Inspirational Artists- Yoshiyuki Kawada
In bonsai, the pot or container is as important as the tree, both completing the whole composition. A tree without a pot is just a tree. The word bonsai literally means plant in a pot, bon being a tray or pot and sai a planting or plant. Many enthusiasts will tell you one can experience the want for more and more pots and this can become an addiction when talented artists like Yoshiyuki Kawada exist. Kawada’s work is simply amazing and has been tooted as one of the best pot makers in Japan. Kawada specialises in small mame and shohin pots which at this size he carves out of blocks…
