Cast in Iron

Saad Khayar's naturalistic and detailed tenpai

- Saad Khayar

Tenpai are small sculptures that are mainly made in bronze and can be added to a bonsai display, or appreciated as small sculptures.

Tenpai are ornaments added to a bonsai display to emphasize the expression of the depicted scenery. The themes of the ornaments are as variable as the possibilities of their use. A sculpture of a pagoda or a bridge can reveal the size of a scene, while a heron can symbolize the calm and grace of a leafless tree in a winter display.

A crab or frog can make you hear the murmur of a creek, the motif of a focused person can let you relate to the stillness of a moment.

Samurai and African art

My professional background is that of a designer and 3D artist and I work in computer animation. I enjoy photography, drawing and restoring antique Kabuto (samurai helmets) or broken ceramics (Kintsugi).

I take my inspiration from a variety of sources, like the Classical Japanese arts such as the landscape prints of Kawase Hasui, or the animals of Kuniyoshi, and the abstract character of old African art, and contemporary sources such as the nature photographer Simon Bugnon or the painter António Ole.