Astop what you're doing and sit down. We're going to take a few minutes to calm down. The subject lends itself to it: bonsai is a universe of zenitude. In Japan, where it is a major art, this culture is associated with eternity and harmony. In France, its arrival is not so recent: it dates back to the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1878, which contributed to its development.
Metal rods allow you to shape the branches to make them sinuous.
Jonathan Guerin
Bruno Faure is a distant heir to this story. On his farm in Lacropte, in Dordogne, he has around 2,000 plants. A story that goes back to childhood. As a child, he saw an acorn growing in his grandmother's garden and became passionate about plants.
Jonathan Guerin
Trees must be pruned to maintain a miniature format.
This grandson and son of a farmer settled with his cows in 2001. And started doing bonsai. “I took courses with masters in the field. Some came from Japan. »
55,000 subscribers
Wanting to share his knowledge, the man who calls himself a “farmer” launched his YouTube channel, Vital Bonsaï, in 2013. “That’s what made me known. I have 55,000 subscribers today. At the same time, I have a small nursery that I am trying to develop. »
Jonathan Guerin
This bonsai is typically in a Burton style, named after the famous director.
It is a complementary activity, “but which requires daily work,” Bruno Faure is careful to point out. We're not like a sculptor spending fifty hours on a piece. Me, if I sell a tree, I can say that I have been working on it for fifteen years! »
Jonathan Guerin
On his farm in Lacropte, Bruno Faure has around 2,000 bonsai plants.
An art of patience. Because the bonsai is a miniature tree that must be pruned so that it remains small, and twisted to give the impression that it has been worn down naturally by the elements. Each branch can thus be tutored by a metal rod to make it sinuous. “All the movements are already in nature,” reveals the bonsai master. We give a direction, we try to reproduce what would naturally exist. »
“I am in favor of a French style. I'm out of power »
However, bonsai styles are extremely codified. And the 53-year-old man clearly has a tendency to free himself from the Japanese shackles: “I am in favor of a French style. Two compatriots invented the Burton style, in reference to director Tim Burton. These are trees with a fantastic, more creative style. I'm out of the loop. »
Jonathan Guerin
The movements of the tree are literally shaped by the hand of Bruno Faure.
This has led to him being regularly criticized. Under some of his 400 videos published on YouTube, “haters” (hateful Internet users) do not hesitate to denigrate his work, which deviates from ancestral rules. “When I go to competitions, I am also criticized by the purists. But when a visitor to an exhibition tells me that he felt an emotion thanks to my bonsai, I tell myself that I succeeded. So, the advice I would give to those who want to get started is that they must like it. »
Jonathan Guerin
The art of bonsai is that of patience, to sculpt plants over the years.
Indeed, there is no need to build tension over a passion which serves, above all, to remain zen. “For me, it’s my release valve. Having my hands in the ground is my psychotherapy. There is a real letting go. »
Little notoriety
The majority of feedback on social networks is positive. Especially since Covid. During confinement, the Lacropte farmer broadcast live every day for an hour. “It gave me a little notoriety,” laughs Bruno. And it led to real relationships, even friendships. It's super enriching: we meet all professional categories among those who are passionate about bonsai. And then we observe a real return to life. People need a connection with nature. »
Jonathan Guerin
The goal of the bonsai master is to make the tree look older than it is, as if it had suffered wear and tear from natural elements.
We can even break down the Internet wall thanks to on-site training courses, which are useful for understanding one thing: “It's always the tree that decides. We don't force him, we pamper him. You have to show great humility for this art; even if I think that it is not an art, but very advanced botany. »
“I would like to organize a bonsai exhibition in a castle here”
And beware of those who would like to make a business out of it. Bruno Faure is one of the handful of bonsai professionals in France. A not really flourishing activity: “A tree can be presentable when it has achieved a certain harmony and suitable proportions, but this can take five or fifteen years. Today, competition is globalized. You can find bonsai for 15 euros, while I can sell them for 100 euros. »
Jonathan Guerin
Bruno Faure gives introductory bonsai pruning lessons on his YouTube channel.
It is therefore passion that prevails. The Périgourdin is planning to carry out workshops with a florist from Périgueux. But he dreams even bigger: “I would like to organize a bonsai exhibition in a castle here, which would have a European, even international, aim. This would allow foreigners to discover Périgord and bonsai to Périgord residents. »
