+ At the beginning of é Eta eKe (73) Ea aM uel LET HSL QAR OUTS Tale I celal cd honoured. * From this background a Chinese philosopher, 4 Taoism which taught people to integrate themselves laa el Serre inka Aer i Eee) GURU C UC SUL Le) alla cs AConcept The Taoist beliefs led Chinese to take much pleasure in the calming landscapes of their natural environment and eventually emulate these scenes so they were closer to hand This was achieved through the creation of landscape paintings to view or by creating imitation landscapes some of which were ona very large scale A stone sculpture af lao Tau, located north of Quanzhou at the foot of Mount Qingyuan,Geographical Influence + The most impressive feature of China isthat itis endowed with @ diverse natural andscane. + Eighty-five percent of Chinais markedly mountainous, The five famous “Hua mountain, Tal mountain, North Heng mountain, jountain an Su in symbolize the centre of the thee ofthe world’s preatest rivers, — the ‘the Yangtse River (Changin), and the West + They rs 1e central area of the China and flow ea Spliting fo mmytiad smal streams sh several Be te tied feature of China's physical context sits datne regional ‘variation in climate. poe * The abundance and beauty ofthe natural landscape exourees onginated and nurtured Chinese art as well as Chinese gardens and Chinese architecture.Design Philosophy * Chinese garden may be viewed as a miniature of the Chinese landscape. * Nature is loved and held in highest honour in Chinese art, but this does not mean that the nature must be simply “duplicated” in its original form. * The main principle of Chinese garden art is to recreate nature, to present its essence without an artificial effect. * The recreation must be based on profound observation and a deep understanding of the nature. + The design of Chinese garden is a process of abstraction and stylization of the existing landscape. * The aim of creating a natural form in Chinese garden is to celebrate the human spirit.Characteristics of Design * In the Chinese garden, the garden scenes are concealed inside different scenic sections, thus, they only can be revealed in sequence along the paths. * The paths in a Chinese garden are usually constructed with varying widths or paved with aimerent Favement materials to give the beholders the different senses of experience: constriction, roughness, release, and smoothness. * The scenic spots in the pate Chinese gardens are built for static and dynamic viewing, and lingering observation. * Thus, a scene in a private Chinese garden was designed for viewing from a number of observation points and angles. * Every scenic section should have its own landscape character, but the garden as whole must be unified under a central theme. * Walls were the most common means of demarcating one spatial segment from another.Design Features Source: The Garden AsElements of Chinese GardenRocks * The stone loving of the Chinese stems from the magical views of the Chinese five holy mountains, which seems to have played an important role in the Taoist anchoretism. * Rock was valued for its bumps, furrows and hollows, and for the colour and texture of its surface. + In Chinese gardens, artificial mountains are also function as space-dividing structural components. * The sculptural Taihu rock is especially prized because it represents wisdom and immortality, and is only procurable from Tai Lake, just west of Suzhou. * The Chinese word for landscape, shan shui, literally = means “mountains and waters” while a common phrase for making a garden means “digging ponds and piling i mountains".Water * Mountains and water complement each other in the Chinese arts. * Water serves as peaceful opposition and balance to mountain scenery, and is regarded as the absolutely necessary element to represent the totality of nature in perfect harmony. + Water was also used for providing listening satisfaction in the Chinese private gardens. + Watercourses were never shaped into any unnatural geometrical patterns in the Chinese private garden. A water fountain is never found ak in the private Chinese garden. + Physically water absorbs the heat and adjust the microclimate during the warm seasons.Vegetation = ee tot er eas tater eptencentaerss co a pce Se cee ae cs eeu ure suc sels ua = ag ees eee eae i ye | f s Gare re temics er ok eee uae Ga uot ee oa * Decco Ce ite. roe hue Cnet cc urcuageesn a ian oC as AEE eI dw Sy 4 ha ; + Sparse plantings ofséesonal flowers are scattered Spout but will never befoundin, Pier ees we SRO ag eR sale cic cides Deo, nerd Pei hoh rt chet mente eyes celle (eo Skew) A ae Cru UT Ee oe ee Pedra cure ta AA 0 nt Sack Ue us clu coe uel aur MoreMy cic uke unseat) cae) 8 Ee aches eee ay lace eeSymbolism in Vegetation Most commonly used plants and trees: * Lotus- perfection + Peach- longevity * Pine- age, silence and solitude = Mulberry- human activity / toil * Bamboo- strength and resilience * Peony- wealth + Chrysanthemum- the courage to make sacrifices * Flowering peach- promise of spring flowering + Plum- renewal and strength of will (very important plant to include in the garden and highly symbolic) Plum LotusesPathways * Paths are constructed to accentuate the changing scenes and views into the garden and Beyond. Paths in Chinese gardens are often uneven and zigzag, * The paths are like the passages of a human |ife There, is always sonetiying new or different when seen from a different angle, while the future is unknown and unpredictable, Paths may also link to the beauty of scroll paintings where the landscape is revealed not in one hit but in a succession of views. ‘The path may be covered in stone, pebbles or tiles. Or it might be swept clean and interspersed with patches of moss or other low ground covers.Bridge * The bridge connects the two different vistas in the Chinese garden. * These are also constructed as a symbol of contrast against the moving water. * The half moon cavity under the bridge, which gets completed after the reflection on the water surface follows the principle of harmony and balance.Garden Structures + Among the most ground are walkways, pavilions, and bridges. * Timber frame construction plays a decisive role here. * Pavilionlike houses have neither a harsh nor dominant effect, but rather bend effortlessly into their general surroundings. * More specifically, we can divide the structures in classical Chinese gardens into the following: Lobby, Corridor, Parlour, Waterside Kiosk, Storied Chamber, Bridge, Storied Pavilion, Pagoda, Kiosk, Wall. alDesign Features * Distant view * Obstructive scenery, blocking view * Borrowed scenery, view borrowing * Miniature scenery * Leaking through scenery * Terminal feature * Vista line, vista * Background * Feature spot, view spot== * Nearby Views Enframed scenery’ Main feature Objective view Front view Order of sceneriesClassification of Chinese Gardens Imperial Style Chinese Gardens Scholarly Style Chinese Gardenspn at” *45, tmperiat Style ae Gardens The royal gardens originated in the ancient game reserves of the Chinese emperors of the Shang Dynasty.Shanglin Garden * The Shanglin Garden of the Qin Dynasty was one of the most famous royal palace gardens in ancient China. The E’ Fang Palace, famed for its grandiosity and luxury, was part of the Shanglin Garden. * The garden contained a large number of animals, rare flowers and exotic fruit trees, as well as the largest pond, the Kunming Pond.Shanglin Garden-PlanGanquan Garden * The Ganquan Garden was the product of the Han Dynasty. * The garden housed more than a hundred palaces, altars and pavilions. * One of the altars, the Tongtiantai Altar, was used for holding sacrificial rites to Heaven and meeting the gods.Other Chinese Gardens * In the Tang Dynasty , splendid palaces were built in the cities of Chang'an and Luoyang * In the Song Dynasty, the design of the royal garden, Genyue, in the city of Kaifeng marked the beginning of a new style in Chinese gardening, the emphasis being shifted to the stone landscape. * The unique landscape of the garden was fashioned by piling up the Taihu Lake Rocks to form the shape of hills, valleys, ponds and islands. * Royal gardens in the Ming Dynasty were mainly the Three Seas, in addition to the Imperial Garden at the back of the palace. * They were the North, Middle and South Seas. * They were long and narrow in shape, harmonizing naturally with the garden, contrasting sharply in style with the grand palace complexYuanming Garden * The royal gardens reached the peak of their splendor in the Qing Dynasty. * The Yuanming Garden was the largest and underwent ongoing reconstruction during the reigns of Emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong. * While inheriting the traditional style of the former royal gardens, they adopted some artistic characters of the private gardens in the Yangtze Delta in their ambition to gather in its embrace all the famous gardens and beautiful views of the country.* What was unique in the garden was the Ten Scenes of Great Fountains, also known as the Western Buildings, which imitated the Western baroque architectural style. * That was the first time that Chinese gardens copied the layout and gardening techniques of classical Western gardening, such as fountains, sculpture and mazes. * For this reason, the Yuanming Garden was considered to be the Garden of Gardens.Scholarly Saas Se ee eee Cau Cue. Ca aa BCR eras eatConcept + The beauty of natural landscapes became the highlight of private gardens and had certain spiritual functions. * Private gardens were a means of expressing feelings and emotions. * This was especially the case with the gardens owned by the literati and scholar- Bureaucrats. * Private gardens were the symbol of their leisurely and detached way of life. * There were more than a thousand private gardens in the City of Luoyang at that time, and even mare in the City of Chang'an.Features * These gardens were generally large in size, with manmade pools and hils and a variety of flowers, trees and bamboo. * At that time, garden designers had already learned to apply such techniques as borrowing scenes and contrasting scenes, * Stone appreciation had become fashionable, and many gardens had carved out the Taihu Lake Rocks to compose scenic spots. * Architectural constructions in these private gardens were generally smalland exquisite or statuesque and elegant, with a circuitous design and a great variety in spatial arrangements. * Plants in the garden were mainly deciduous and evergreen trees, supplemented with bines, bamboo, bananas and grapevines, so as to provide an evergreen and diversified view all year round. * Stone views were mainly constructed with Taihu Lake Rocks and Yellow Stones.Lingering Garden Yipu GardenOther Facts * According to historical records, there were more than fifty private gardens in Beijing, and more than 270 in Suzhou City. * The most famous private gardens in Beijing were Li Wei’s Qinghua Garden and Mi Wanzhongs Shaoyuan Garden, both of which designed to enjoy water views. * The former was characterized by its splendid magnificence while the latter mainly emphasized simple delicacy.Famous Gardens CER: (1) ee a a —— The ely Cea) ee CaBeihai Park * Beihai Park was initially built in the 10th Century. * It is amongst the largest of Chinese gardens and contains numerous historically important structures, palaces and temples. * The structures and scenes in the Beihai Park are described as masterpieces of gardening technique that reflects the style and the superb architectural skill and richness of traditional Chinese garden art.The Humble Administrator’s Garden * Covering 51,950 sq.m, the Humble Administrator's Garden is the largest of all classical gardens in Suzhou. * It is centered upon the broad expanse of a lake, making up about one fifth of the total area. * With well spaced buildings, the garden landscape and waterscape are simple, extensive and natural, possessing the traditional appearances of the Ming Dynasty. * It is divided into three parts; the eastern, middle and western parts. * The house lies in the south of the garden.Summer Palace * The Summer Palace, located approximately twelve kilometers to the northwest of Beijing's city proper, was first built in 1750 and rebuilt in 1886. + An outstanding example of imperial gardens in classical Chinese style, the Summer Palace spreads on an area of 2.9 million square meter, three fourths of which are water surfaces. + Its major attractions are the Wanshou (longevity) Hill and the Kunming (Jade Spring)Lake. + The garden is 2 showcase of pavilions in diversified, exotic designs which are strung together by a corridor more than seven hundred meter in length anda seemingly unending chain of balustrades of snow-white marble. + With western hills simmering in the background, the Summer Palace is strewn with’ postcard perfect sceneries, including the Yuquan ade Spring)Pagoda, the Kunming Lake, and the bridge with séventeen arches. + The huge garden's artistic style, which is at once Kaleidoscope "and, harmonious, is attributable “to the unknown designers! ingenious landscaping skills