chensullivan

Jim Sullivan
Bio Statement: I am a designer of biomedical research devices. I have been involved with bonsai for about 30 years, having served as vice president of the Potomac Bonsai Association, and as current president of the Bowie Bonsai Club. As vice president of PBA, one of my responsibilities was our annual bonsai exhibition at The National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. I have attended several PBA/American Bonsai Society/ Bonsai Clubs International sponsored symposia and have lectured at bonsai club meetings.

Artist Statement: I have been interested in horticulture since childhood, probably influenced by my mother¹s love of gardening. I believe a deep interest in any subject leads to the exotic or unusual. Bonsai, while not difficult, is considered by some to be exotic, a horticultural extreme. In an attempt to mimic, in miniature, one of the grandest natural wonders, I satisfy my scientific curiosity and artistic urges.

Ray Chen + Jim Sullivan
Ray Chen Bio Statement: I received my MFA in 1997 from the Rochester Institute of Technology and my BFA from Ohio University in 1995. Following graduate school, I was a Lormina Salter Fellowship recipient and artist-in-residence at Baltimore Clayworks for four years. Currently I teach at the University of Southern Maine as an assistant professor in ceramics. My work has been exhibited nationally and internationally with numerous reviews and publications. My sculpture expresses the crossed boundaries between Eastern and Western culture and aesthetics - as well as my faith and the physical distance between my mother and myself. Because of her Parkinson's disease and family tragedy, I encourage her with love and warmth. Artist Statement: The bonsai tree container that I have created is a reflection of my Asian culture. Through my human contact with oriental philosophy, I have learned about nature, sensibility and understanding. The Chinese culture I grew up in also brought me to understand the true language of form and symmetry. "Bonsai InSites" connects a live relation between the tree and myself, the tree and Chinese culture, the tree and clay and the tree and the container. I respect the old, experienced bonsai tree, and I also respect the humble and ordinary material, clay. They allow me to use nature as a source of inspiration to investigate sculptural form.
		Click here for a detail of the image above. Life stoneware and earthenware, cone 04 gas reduction Dimensions: 15l x 13w x 31h Bonsai Tree Information: Botanical (Latin) Name: Cedrus deodara Common Name: Deodar Cedar Style: Cascade Estimated Age: 30 years Time in Training: 25 years Source of Plant: collected in suburban Maryland
		Jim Sullivan Bio Statement: I am a designer of biomedical research devices. I have been involved with bonsai for about 30 years, having served as vice president of the Potomac Bonsai Association, and as current president of the Bowie Bonsai Club. As vice president of PBA, one of my responsibilities was our annual bonsai exhibition at The National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. I have attended several PBA/American Bonsai Society/ Bonsai Clubs International sponsored symposia and have lectured at bonsai club meetings. Artist Statement: I have been interested in horticulture since childhood, probably influenced by my mother¹s love of gardening. I believe a deep interest in any subject leads to the exotic or unusual. Bonsai, while not difficult, is considered by some to be exotic, a horticultural extreme. In an attempt to mimic, in miniature, one of the grandest natural wonders, I satisfy my scientific curiosity and artistic urges.