Chinese outstanding bonsai artist: Zhang Zailiang

In his infancy, Zhang Zailiang still loves bonsai art.

Speaking of Zhang Zailiang, the first impression is that he is simple, generous and approachable. If you do not see the many award certificates awarded to him over the years, it is hard to imagine that he is a senior bonsai teacher of Suzhou Garden Bureau, executive director of China Bonsai artists Association, outstanding Chinese bonsai artists in the next century and senior advisor to the World Bonsai Stone Culture Advisory Council. He loved bonsai art all his life, regarded bonsai art as his second life, often faced bonsai, carefully cut it, absorbed in it, and forgot to eat and sleep. His bonsai production technology is in the leading level in China, and his works have won many awards and become an important descendant of Su-style bonsai art.

Zhang Zailiang is not only well-known in domestic bonsai art circles, but also has a certain influence abroad. One year, he visited Japan at the invitation of a friend and was warmly received by a number of Japanese bonsai artists. When he offered to visit Masahiko Kimura, Japan's most famous world-class bonsai artist, he was politely refused by the hostess because of his busy work. However, when Masahiko Kimura knew that it was Mr. Zhang Zailiang of China, he not only received him as an exception, but also accompanied Zhang Zailiang to visit Japan's main bonsai gardens and production bases for several days in a row, which impressed his colleagues.

Love bonsai, plant flowers and enjoy them

Zhang Zailiang was born in Haiyan, Zhejiang Province in 1942. In April 1963, he jumped the queue in the fifth production team of Xinnong Battalion, Pingwang Town, Wujiang County, worked in the town sauce factory, and worked as a salesperson in the sales department of the supply and marketing co-operative. Since childhood, he loves nature, likes flowers and plants, and has a strong interest in plant growth, strange stones and strange scenery. In 1968, Zhang Zailiang planted a pomegranate in an ordinary flowerpot. This was his first bonsai.

In 1970, I borrowed a copy of "in the Flowers and trees" from a friend, which was published by Shanghai Culture Publishing House in September 1956 and compiled by Zhou Lianjuan, a famous Suzhou painter and bonsai artist. At that time, it was during the "Cultural Revolution", only talking about "politics", the bookstore was full of political books, and the traditional culture was criticized as "feudal dross". Zhang Zailiang borrowed "among the Flowers and trees" and learned the basic knowledge of bonsai art by carefully reading it without picking up his hands. This book became Zhang Zailiang's enlightening teacher to delve into bonsai art.

In the early 1970s during the Cultural Revolution, bonsai had neither status nor market. They also run the risk of being labeled as "petty bourgeois sentiment", "not failing to live up to their legitimate job" and being criticized. Not only can not buy bonsai art books, but also can see very few kinds of flowers, even if you can not buy them. Zhang Zailiang often goes to Suzhou gardens, because only in Suzhou gardens can you enjoy a small amount of flowers and bonsai. Once, when he saw the azaleas in full bloom in the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou, he was really reluctant to leave. How he wished he could have a pot of azaleas. Love flowers, Zhang Zailiang, although usually cherish a flower and a grass, at this time also lose face, an exception quietly broke a branch. After returning home, he actually survived the cuttage, so that he had a pot of rhododendron potted flowers that belonged to him very precious at that time.

A few years later, this rare pot of rhododendron was cultivated by him into large potted flowers, and after a few years of cutting propagation, one pot turned into dozens of pots. But he was not satisfied that he had only a few varieties, such as cuckoos, and in order to add new varieties of flowers, he made several special trips to the mountains near the town of Lizhu in Shaoxing, Zhejiang, to dig wild orchids. Once dug up two large bags, happily carried home, planted dozens of pots of orchids. By the mid-1970s, the small garden of Zhang Zailiang's home was full of potted flowers and bonsai, including sparrow plum, elm, five-needle pine, rhododendron, orchid, camellia, and so on.

In 1979, Zhang Zailiang built two bungalows in the town with a small garden of 30 square meters. The roof is made into a platform in order to grow flowers. When the policy was implemented in 1981, Zhang Zailiang changed from a rural hukou to a town hukou, where he was assigned to work in a town supply and marketing co-operative and grow flowers in his spare time after work. When I walked into the house, the garden was full of flowers, and the roof terrace was also full of flowers. Zhang Zailiang moved several pots of flowers to the store to enjoy the flowers with his customers. He regarded planting and appreciating flowers as the greatest pleasure in life.

To learn from nature is to learn from a famous teacher.

Over a long period of time, people from far and near know that Zhang Zailiang loves flowers and grows flowers very well, and more and more people come to Zhang Zeliang's house to enjoy the flowers. In 1985, when Pingwang Town planned to build a park, the secretary of the town party committee found that Zhang Zailiang was a talented person and decided to transfer him to Pingwang Yinghu Park to be responsible for the preparatory work of the park. Such an ordinary personnel transfer for others was an important turning point in Zhang Zailiang's life, making him a garden manager from an amateur bonsai lover, and began to become a professional bonsai artist. Zhang Zailiang gets up early in the morning and feels dark and takes the garden as his home. No matter how busy the park construction work is, his face is always happy. When he was advised to pay attention to rest, his answer was simple: "I am happy".

Thanks to the diligent efforts of Zhang Zailiang, Yinghu Park in Pingwang Town was initially completed in just over a year. It is the first citizen park in Pingwang Town in history. After the opening of the park, the peach red willow green cuckoo is in full bloom in spring, and the chrysanthemum exhibition in autumn is deeply loved by the public, and people who do morning exercises, walk and enjoy the garden continue one after another. What pleases Zhang Zeliang most is that in addition to doing a good job in the daily management of the park, he has also designated a "garden in the park" of about 2,000 square meters (3 mu) to display bonsai.

He gave the small garden an elegant name: "Cuizhuang". From then on, Zhang Zailiang had an opportunity to show his ability to display the art of bonsai. Although it was a "garden in the garden," it was exquisitely arranged, and it was neatly filled with bonsai with different postures. "Cuizhuang" is well-known and has become the main feature of Pingwang Park's reputation. Because of Zhang Zailiang's strong responsibility and love of bonsai and greening, he was elected director of Pingwang town landscaping management station and deputy director of town government greening office.

Zhang Zailiang is not satisfied with his achievements. every year, he subscribes to newspapers and periodicals such as "Bonsai" and "Chinese Flowers", and specially buys books such as "Bonsai plastic Art" and "Flower cultivation and Bonsai production" to conscientiously study theoretical knowledge. absorb the strengths of bonsai works in various places and broaden artistic ideas. He cherishes and strives for every opportunity to learn bonsai art, and strives to improve his theoretical level and practical production skills. In 1985, he attended the Chinese Rural Youth Wealth School and studied garden art. In 1986, he became his beginner disciple by Zhu Zian, a famous bonsai master and leading figure of the Su School. In 1988, he attended the crash course of Beijing Forestry University to study bonsai art, got the first place in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education examination, and was admitted as a member of the China Bonsai artists Association.

At ordinary times, Zhang Zailiang likes to draw nutrition from nature and increase the inspiration for making bonsai. Taking advantage of the opportunity to participate in bonsai exhibitions across the country, he squeezes out time to visit local gardens and scenic spots. Once he sees old and famous trees, he often stares at them for a long time and refuses to leave. Every year, we set aside time to go to the mountains of Zhejiang and Anhui provinces to go into nature to observe the growth law of plants and how to introduce the shape and growth momentum of natural trees into bonsai. Therefore, the bonsai made by Zhang Zailiang has the heroic style and handsome temperament of the big and old trees in nature, and has become the descendant of the Su School of bonsai. He has repeatedly won the praise of Mr. Zhu Zi'an and praised Zhang Zeliang many times: "he is my true apprentice."

Zhang Zailiang (right) pays homage to Zhu Zian (left), a famous bonsai master and leader of the Soviet School.

Inherit the tradition and blaze new trails bravely

Bonsai art, which originated in China, is a traditional Chinese art treasure. Bonsai art is a plastic art that integrates garden cultivation, literature, painting and other arts. it is the epitome of natural scenery, with simple natural beauty and elegant artistic beauty, and is known as "three-dimensional painting" and "silent poetry". It is not only loved by the broad masses of domestic people, but also enjoys a high reputation in the forest of art in the world.

Bonsai art has been handed down from generation to generation. Due to the influence of historical evolution, geographical environment and natural conditions, the main bonsai schools have been formed, such as Su School, Yang School, Sichuan School, Lingnan School and Shanghai School. The bonsai produced by Zhang Zailiang belongs to the Su style, which is characterized by "learning from nature", thick tie and fine cut, elegant and elegant, which has the greatest impact on the formation of other schools. Common varieties are mainly triangular maple, pomegranate, five-needle pine, elm and so on, the most classic artistic style is "six sets, three tortoises, one knot top", a total of 10 pieces, also known as "perfect". In nature, due to the gravity of the earth, when trees grow to a certain height, they can no longer grow taller. The original spire grows year by year into a pot-shaped, flat-shaped crown, with branches stretching around to form "supports" and "platforms" scattered between high and low.

Selection of Zhang Zailiang's award-winning works

The most valuable thing about Zhang Zeliang is that on the basis of understanding and inheriting the traditional style and theoretical essentials of Su style bonsai, he creatively breaks through the structural form of "six sets, three supports and one knot" and pursues the natural beauty and artistic conception beauty of the tree. Zhang Zailiang believes that the structural form of "six sets, three supports and one knot" is an ideal bonsai art. However, the perfect ideal structure of trees growing in nature is rare. And the big trees and ancient trees we see are in a variety of forms, such as majestic, adventurous, handsome, and so on, so bonsai art must not stick to one style in "learning from nature" and dare to create its own unique style.

He has a pot of triangular maple collected from Jiuhua Mountain in Anhui Province. the original tree is about 1.6 meters high. when it is dug, most of the trunk is dry, and only a small half of it survives. The tree is more than a thousand years old. It is such a surviving triangular maple stump that, after careful pruning and care by Zhang Zailiang, unexpectedly took root and survived, sprouting new branches on the bark and spitting out attractive tender green leaves. A few years later, a basin of green and simple, Qiuqu Xiongqi, wild large bonsai, standing in the "Cuizhuang", the tree is covered with traces of wind, rain, cold and summer tempering, so that the guests are amazed. Some units wanted to buy it with a heavy sum of 100000 yuan, which was politely refused by Zhang Zailiang. His award-winning bonsai "Dragon Dance Caiyun" (Rabo), some customers are willing to "shoot special" car in exchange, Zhang Zailiang also politely refused.

Excelsior, excellent works to be rewarded

Up to now, Zhang Zailiang has studied the bonsai art of flowers for more than 40 years, and the bonsai production technology is excellent. He has more than 1000 potted flower bonsai of more than 60 varieties, such as black pine, sparrow plum and rhododendron. He believes that a bonsai is the ugliest and can be beautiful after several years of revision, because bonsai shows an indomitable spirit of life and vitality. Because nature is popular with people all over the world, the bonsai art of imitating nature knows no national boundaries. He often said to his disciples: to make bonsai, you must have perseverance. You can't fish for two days and dry the net for three days. We should be weak in fame and wealth and dare to innovate. Because Zhang Zailiang is open-minded and studious and strives for refinement in art, he is becoming more and more well-known in Chinese bonsai circles. In the national bonsai exhibitions held over the years, Zhang Zailiang's bonsai exhibitions have repeatedly won awards:

Selection of Zhang Zailiang's award-winning works

In February 1989, Zhang Zailiang was awarded a member of China Bonsai artists Association. In October 1989, Zhang Zailiang participated in the second China Flower Expo and the first China International Bonsai Exhibition Competition held at the Beijing Agricultural Exhibition Hall for the first time. On the train to Beijing, Zhang Zeliang put bonsai on the berth during the day and next to the pillow at night in order not to damage the branches and leaves of Finch Plum. However, when he carefully carried the bonsai to the agricultural exhibition hall, the preliminary evaluation had been announced. After Zhang Zailiang left the bonsai in the organizing committee, he went to the room to have a rest. Unexpectedly, the judges said to Zhang Zailiang the next day that your pot of Finch Plum bonsai has a unique shape and has been praised by the experts present. Unfortunately, you are late and can only award this pot of Finch Plum as an "excellent work Award" as an exception.

In May 1991, Zhang Zailiang was invited to participate in the "first China International Bonsai Conference" and the "Revitalizing China Cup" bonsai exhibition contest. Zhang Zailiang's elm stump bonsai won the first prize. In October 1992, the China Bonsai Association held a "Symposium on bonsai on both sides of the Taiwan Strait" at the Workers' Cultural Palace in Nanjing. Zhang Zailiang was entrusted by the association to take charge of the bonsai exhibition. His real cypress bonsai "extraordinary years" won the second prize, while the black pine bonsai "shamed soul" won the third prize. In May 1994, Zhang Zailiang was elected as executive director of Jiangsu Bonsai Root Art Aesthetics Research Association and senior bonsai teacher of Suzhou Garden Bureau. In April 1997, the Rhododendron Branch of China Flower Association held the third National Azalea Exhibition in Suzhou Humble Administration Garden. Zhang Zailiang's rhododendron bonsai "Zhibai" won the first prize, and "Yingshanhong" won the second prize for cultivation.

In January 1999, Zhang Zailiang was elected director of China Bonsai artists Association. In March 1999, Zhang Zailiang was awarded the honorary title of "Cross-Century Chinese Outstanding Bonsai Artist" in Beijing. The Fifth Chinese Bonsai Evaluation Exhibition was held in Huqiu, Suzhou in May 2001. All the five bonsai provided by Zhang Zailiang won the prize. Among them: "Old Bai Fengchun" and "Dragon Dance Cuiyun" won the Silver Award; "Jicui", "Qiu Tan" and "Cangsong Ranggang" won the Bronze Award. In April 2002, Zhang Zailiang won a commemorative award for his participation in the bonsai exhibition of the Shanghai International Flower Festival.

In May 2004, the China Bonsai artists Association held the "China Xinyi Bonsai Flower Art Festival Bonsai Exhibition" in Xinyi, Jiangsu Province. The five-needle pine bonsai "exploring" provided by Zhang Zailiang won the Silver Award, and the Black Song "Jiangyi Love" won the Bronze Award. In March 2005, Zhang Zailiang was awarded the honorary villager of "China Bonsai Art and Culture Village" (Zhujiajiao). In December 2005, Zhang Zailiang was elected as the executive director of the China Bonsai artists Association. In October 2006, "China 4th Flower and Tree Bonsai Art Festival" and "China 'Longevity Cup' Bonsai Competition" was held in Rugao, Jiangsu Province. Zhang Zailiang's participation in the bonsai exhibition won the second prize.

In September 2008, in view of Zhang Zailiang's positive influence and outstanding contribution in promoting the development of bonsai stone art, he was elected as the Senior Advisor of the Advisory Committee by the World Bonsai Stone Culture Association. At the Seventh National Bonsai Exhibition, Zhang Zailiang participated in the bonsai five-needle pine "Qiu Tan" and won the competition prize. The "Winter Olympic Cup" Chinese bonsai invitation exhibition and bonsai creation competition was held in Shanghai Botanical Garden in October 2010. Zhang Zailiang's poplar bonsai "Hua Gai Green" won the boutique award.

Zhang Zailiang's award-winning works are selected: the name "Huagai Greenfield". The tree species is white-skinned yellow poplar with a height of 85CM, a wide diameter of 125CM, and a tree age of about 100 years. The bonsai was obtained by the author in 1992 at the South-North Lake Forest Farm in Haiyan, Zhejiang Province. after 18 years of careful design, modeling, maintenance and cultivation, the bonsai grows luxuriantly and shaded by thick shade. The bonsai tree trunk is smooth, the posture is neat and natural, it is a rare masterpiece.

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