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Chinese Gardens
Chinese Gardens is about the history and evolution, and the art and techniques of Chinese gardens and their architectures. The author compares the gardens with the appearance of natural landscapes and describes their meaning to the Chinese, and the Chinese people¡¯s admiration of them. With b&w and color pictures.
- GenresChinaArchitectureAsia
151 pages, Paperback
First published June 16, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 22, 2024
I've been wanting to read a beginner's guide to the basic principles of Chinese gardens, but this was not the book for that. This was more of a historical rundown of the evolution of Chinese gardens. It featured a lot of detailed descriptions of individual gardens. Unfortunately, these two things were lost on me as the book did not have a lot of pictures with which to illustrate its exposition. As someone who has very little exposure to Chinese gardens and history, it was difficult to imagine most things. However, I did learn a couple of things which makes the challenging reading experience worth it.
Notes:
- The historical origins of Chinese gardens are the You platform, which were inside hunting grounds that served as place for hunting and communion with the spirits.
- Plantations were emulations of nature in the wild that can be enjoyed at will.
- Some design principles:
--Layout (architecture) has to both get scenery and make scenery
--“Hills, water and architecture form scenic spots, and multiple scenic spots form scenic areas. Scenic spots and scenic areas work in synergy to create a garden with more beauty than the eye can take in.”
--The walls divide but do not separate
--Divide the garden into smaller courtyards to minimize the sense of narrowness
--The trick to gardenmaking is borrowing. Borrowing major landscapes set within minor frames i.e. mountains.
--Court in front, garden to the rear.
--To present the feeling of greatness through small details:
"The designers designed more winding paths and secret scenic spots. They sought to separate the limited space into diverse small worlds by making full use of the rockery, hollow corridor, and small walls. No matter large structures such as a hall or a pavilion, or small decorations such as a rock or a bamboo, they all stand as independent scenic spots. By doing these, macro poetic realm can be felt through micro scenes."
--The building of a garden often comes from literary inspiration
--The technique of leaving imaginary space greatly broadens the expressive power of stones and rocks
--Using separation to create a gradation
--Kinds of view watching: in motion or fixed
--“Visitors will be touched by the beauty of rhythms when the beautiful views unfold gradually like a painting”
- Interesting examples:
--Gu Hua woodcarving ceiling
--Seeking Poem Path, if just for the name
--The Fang, or the fake pleasure boats
-Particular moments:
--On the Lingering and Listening Hall: "When summer passes and autumn comes, one can sit in the pavilion silently and listen to the sound of rain dropping on the leaves of the lotus"
--Yellow wall and bamboo shadow in ling gu temple in Nanjing
--Wine and poem chanting ritual in Orchid Pavilion
--Windchimes hung under pagoda floor
--Growing pine to listen to wind, growing banana to listen to rain
Notes:
- The historical origins of Chinese gardens are the You platform, which were inside hunting grounds that served as place for hunting and communion with the spirits.
- Plantations were emulations of nature in the wild that can be enjoyed at will.
- Some design principles:
--Layout (architecture) has to both get scenery and make scenery
--“Hills, water and architecture form scenic spots, and multiple scenic spots form scenic areas. Scenic spots and scenic areas work in synergy to create a garden with more beauty than the eye can take in.”
--The walls divide but do not separate
--Divide the garden into smaller courtyards to minimize the sense of narrowness
--The trick to gardenmaking is borrowing. Borrowing major landscapes set within minor frames i.e. mountains.
--Court in front, garden to the rear.
--To present the feeling of greatness through small details:
"The designers designed more winding paths and secret scenic spots. They sought to separate the limited space into diverse small worlds by making full use of the rockery, hollow corridor, and small walls. No matter large structures such as a hall or a pavilion, or small decorations such as a rock or a bamboo, they all stand as independent scenic spots. By doing these, macro poetic realm can be felt through micro scenes."
--The building of a garden often comes from literary inspiration
--The technique of leaving imaginary space greatly broadens the expressive power of stones and rocks
--Using separation to create a gradation
--Kinds of view watching: in motion or fixed
--“Visitors will be touched by the beauty of rhythms when the beautiful views unfold gradually like a painting”
- Interesting examples:
--Gu Hua woodcarving ceiling
--Seeking Poem Path, if just for the name
--The Fang, or the fake pleasure boats
-Particular moments:
--On the Lingering and Listening Hall: "When summer passes and autumn comes, one can sit in the pavilion silently and listen to the sound of rain dropping on the leaves of the lotus"
--Yellow wall and bamboo shadow in ling gu temple in Nanjing
--Wine and poem chanting ritual in Orchid Pavilion
--Windchimes hung under pagoda floor
--Growing pine to listen to wind, growing banana to listen to rain
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 7, 2021
The translation has a certain “fragrance”, but only slightly distracting. And the distraction is amusing, when trying to figure out what the original characters were supposed to mean.
The pictures are, at times, oddly placed in comparison to the text. And I feel as if the author has a slight ethnic and culturally superiority complex.
Other than those things I really enjoyed the book and learned a little about the history and development of Chinese gardens. I would love to read his other books that are more focused on architecture(“collected edition of Chinese architectural art-fitment and decoration”, “20 lessons in chinese ancient architecture”, and “the art of doors in chinese architecture”). There are also some books mentioned within the text that look interesting. (“Craftsmanship of Gardening” and “zhuangzi”)
The pictures are, at times, oddly placed in comparison to the text. And I feel as if the author has a slight ethnic and culturally superiority complex.
Other than those things I really enjoyed the book and learned a little about the history and development of Chinese gardens. I would love to read his other books that are more focused on architecture(“collected edition of Chinese architectural art-fitment and decoration”, “20 lessons in chinese ancient architecture”, and “the art of doors in chinese architecture”). There are also some books mentioned within the text that look interesting. (“Craftsmanship of Gardening” and “zhuangzi”)
December 31, 2023
A nice book to have for those who are interested in the history and evolution of Chinese gardens. The pictures are very good for inspirations.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews