Japanese gardens

complete study on Japanese Gardens, elements of Japanese gardens, principles of Japanese gardens, case study on Japanese gardens, examples of Japanese gardens, types of Japanese gardens

1. Japanese gardens Guided By: Prof. Chitra Shinde LANDSCAPE DESIGN Submitted by: Vishakha Patewar Vishaka Bothra Rajeshwari Sancheti Mansi Sushir

2. CONTENTS Introduction History Elements Principles Styles Case study Other examples

3. INTRODUCTION Japanese Gardens are also known as ZEN Gardens. The idea of these gardens began during the ASUKA Period. These are inspired by CHINESE GARDENS. Japanese Gardens first appeared on the island of Honshu. These gardens have their roots in Japanese religion of Shinto. Earlier gardens were designed in order to bring spiritual sense to the gardens and make them places where people could spend their time.

4. HISTORY The history of Japanese Gardens goes back to 7 th century. The first Japanese Garden, that expressed Shinto, Buddhism and Taoism visions can be traced back to Asuka Period. They were designed to capture the landscape in its natural form. In Japan, the five islands of the Chinese legend became one island, called Horaizen, or Mount Horai. Replicas of these legendary mountains, the symbol of a perfect world, are common features of Japanese Gardens. But gradually Japanese Garden designers began to develop their on aesthetics, based on Japanese material and culture. By the end od Edo period, Japanese Gardens had its own distinct appearance. Since the end of 19 th century, these Gardens have also been adopted all over and are also strongly influenced.

5. ELEMENTS Water Rock and sand Garden bridges Stone lanterns and water basins Garden fences and gates Trees and flowers Fish

6. Japanese Gardens always have water either a pond or stream. Water is used not just for its visual quality, but also for its sound. The bank of the pond is usually bordered by rocks and in order to preserve the natural shapes, man-made ponds are asymmetrical. A waterfall is more suitable to stimulate both visual and acoustic senses and a lake or pond is to create a more formal and calm setup. WATER

7. ROCK AND SAND Rocks, sand and gravels are an essential feature of Japanese Garden. Asymmetric arrangement of rocks is preferred. SIZE : Variation in rock sizes offer greater contrast and interest resulting in the more dynamic arrangement of rocks. Rocks are traditionally classified as tall vertical, low vertical, arching, reclining, or flat.

8. COLOUR : Colors of rocks generally varies from grey to black, and from yellow to brick red on the other hand. TEXTURE : Rocks are often used to represent islands and mountains, so conical or dome shaped rough rocks are used. Hard metamorphic rocks are usually placed by waterfalls or streams.

9. GARDEN BRIDGES Bridges could be made of stone or of wood. They could be arched or flat. Bridges can be painted red if it is used for temple garden, as per Chinese tradition.

10. STONE LANTERNS Stone lanterns represents the five elements of Buddhist Cosmology. The piece touching the ground represents the Earth. The next section represents Water. Fire is represented by the section encasing the lantern’s light or flame. Air and void or spirit are represented by the last two sections, top-most and pointing towards the sky.

11. STONE BASINS Stone water basins were originally placed for the visitors to wash their hands and mouth before the Tea ceremony. The water is provided to the basin by a bamboo pipe and they usually have a wooden ladle for drinking the water. In tea gardens, the basin was placed low to the ground, so drinker had to bend over to get this water.

12. GARDEN FENCES AND GATES There are 3 types of fences: Short fence which extends from the house into the garden An inner fence An outer fence Short fences are screens that hide unwanted views or objects. They are about 6-7 feet high and add color and texture to the garden. Materials used are bamboo, wood and twigs of bamboo or tree.

13. TREES AND FLOWERS Plants are chosen according to aesthetic principles. They are used either to hide undesirable sights or to serve as a backdrop to certain garden features. Trees are carefully chosen and arranged for their Autumn colors. Mosses are often used to suggest that gardens are ancient.

14. Flowers are carefully chosen by their seasons of flowering. Some plants are chosen for their religious symbolism, such as the lotus, sacred in Buddhist teachings, or the pine, which represents longevity. The trees are carefully trimmed to provide attractive scenes, and to prevent them from blocking other views of the garden.

15. FISH The idea of using fish in landscape garden is borrowed from Chinese garden. Goldfish were introduced to japan in 16 th century.

16. PRINCIPLES Natural : That should make the garden look as if it grew by itself. Asymmetry : That creates the impression of it being natural. Odd numbers : like 3,5,7 that supports the effect of asymmetry. Simplicity : That follows the idea of “Less is More”. Triangle : That is the most common shape for compositions made of stones, plants, etc. Contrast : That creates tension between elements. Lines : That can create both tranquility and tension. Curves : That softens the effect. Openness : That indicates interaction between all elements.

17. STYLES There are six types of styles in Japanese gardens Pond garden Paradise garden Hermitage garden Dry rock garden or Zen garden Tea gardens Courtyard gardens

18. POND GARDEN Pond gardens are also known as “lake-spring-boat excursion garden. It was imported from china during the Heian period. ELEMENTS OF THE POND GARDEN: Lake Islands FEATURES: It featured a large, ornate residence with two long wings reaching south to a large lake and garden. These gardens had lakes with small island, where musicians played during festivals and ceremonies. Eg. HEIAN-JINJU Old imperial pond garden in Kyoto

19. PARADISE GARDENS These gardens appeared in in late Heian period. They were meant to symbolize paradise or the pure land, where the Buddha sat on the platform contemplating a lotus pond. ELEMENTS : A lake island known as Nakajima A Buddha hall Arching bridge FEATURES: These gardens featured a lake island called Nakajima, where the Buddha hall was located, connected to the shore by an Arching Bridge. Eg. Temple in Uji, Kyoto

20. HERMITAGE GARDENS A hermitage garden is a small garden usually built by a Samurai or Government official who wanted to retire from public life and devote himself to study and meditate. ELEMENTS: Garden- traditional garden features Rustic house Winding path FEATURES: The garden is attached to a rustic house, and approached by winding path, which suggests it is deep in a forest. Eg. Shisen-do Garden, Kyoto

21. DRY ROCK GARDENS / ZEN GARDENS These gardens are meant for meditation. ELEMENTS: White sand Raked gravel FEATRUE These gardens have white sand and raked gravels in place of water, carefully-arranged rocks, and sometimes rocks and sand covered with moss. Eg. Ryoan-ji Temple, Kyoto

22. TEA GARDENS The style of gardens takes its name from the path of the teahouse, which is supposed to inspire the visitor to meditation to prepare for the ceremony. ELEMENTS: Outer garden Gate Covered arbor Inner garden Moist and green pathway

23. FEATURES: There is an outer garden, with a gate and covered arbor where guests wait for the invitation to enter. Then they pass through a gate to the inner garden, where they wash their hands and rinse their mouth, before entering in the teahouse. The path is always kept moist and green, and there are no bright flowers so that the visitor is not distracted from meditation. Eg. Teahouse in Ise Jingu

24. COURTYARD GARDENS These small gardens were originally found in interior of Heian period and palaces. ELEMENTS: Stone lantern Water basin Stepping stones Plants FEATURES: These tiny gardens were meant to be seen, not entered. They were design to give a glimpse of nature and some privacy to the residence of the rear side of the building. Eg. Villa of Murin-an, Kyoto

25. Case study : KINKAKU-JI GARDEN, KYOTO, JAPAN

26. Kinkaku-ji garden is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. The golden pavilion is a 3 story building. The top 2 stories of the pavilion are covered with pure gold leaf. The pavilion extends over a pond (Kyoko chi pond) that reflects the building. The golden pavilion is set in a magnificent strolling garden The Kinkaku-ji grounds were built according to description of western paradise of the Buddha Amida, intending to illustrate harmony between heaven and earth. The pavilion symbolizes the land of happiness. INTODUCTION

27. PLAN

28. The largest islet in the pond represents the Japanese Gardens. Tranquility pond is a small pond surrounded by tress. It never dried even during droughts, the pond was also used as a spot to pray for rain. In the centre of the pond is a small island with five element stupa knowns as the White snake Mound.

29. VIEWS In the pond there are eight vary sized island surrounded by famous rocks.

30. SOURCES https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_garden https://www.britannica.com/art/Japanese-garden https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2099_elements.html https://m.espacepourlavie.ca/en/elements-japanese-garden https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinkaku-ji

31. THANK YOU