Design of Ming Dynasty Gardens
Feb 2nd, 2012 by ujinkim
Since our project is designing barriers which must be compatible with Ming Dynasty Garden architecture, design and appearance, here is an explanation of features of Ming Dynasty Gardens.
The gardens in Ming Dynasty are the most outstanding representatives of Chinese gardens. Many of the gardens are designed by the famous literati and painters with its beautiful scenery; a large pond full of lotus blossoms, surrounded by structures and pavilions designed as viewpoints of the lake and gardens.
1. Enjoy the Natural Beauty without leaving your house
The appreciation of natural scenery is an important part of Ming Dynasty gardens. They pursued the special pleasure of “enjoying the beauty of nature without leaving your house,” and aimed for the standard of the “four fits” and “one effect” ; fit for strolling in, fit for sightseeing, fit for amusement and fit for residence, and the effect of being “pleasing to the ears, with the sounds of apes and birds and being pleasing to the eyes, with the scenes of mountains and waters.”
2. Raise the Visitors’ Awareness of the Beauty of Space
Various architectural techniques are used to arrange the position and expand the visual space, such as winding and covering, hiding and revealing, closing and opening, separating and borrowing, to make visitors aware of the aesthetic use of space. All of techniques were used to give a far-reaching view within a restricted area through the arrangement, organization, creation and extension of space.
3. Bring in the Bright Moon and the Fresh Breeze from Nature
Ming Dynasty gardens emphasize the spirit and the vitality of the gardens by using ever-changing nature, such as rain, wind, clouds and sunshine. They are designed to bring into the garden the shades of clouds, the sheen of sunlight, the changes of daylight from dawn to dusk and the variations in weather, enabling even a small garden to contain beautiful, diverse scenery.
4. The Charm of Rocks and Stone
Artificial rocks are regarded as a model of copying from nature. This rocky structure is described as “one mountain possessing the forms of hundreds of mountains.” When it is seen from different angles and perspectives, it has diverse looks from mansions, houses, halls, pavilions, boats, bridges, cliffs, valleys, hills and caves.
5. The Beauty of Flowers and Trees
The gardens are full of beautiful trees and flowers, which have various colors, pleasant fragrances, shape and special characteristics, greatly added to the charm of the gardens. Also, different flowers were planted to bloom in different seasons, giving a changeable beauty.
6. The Beauty of Black and White Shadows of Light
Architectural structures in Ming Dynasty gardens were peculiar with black tiles and whitewashed walls, simple and elegant, with the charm of a sharp contrast between black and white. In Ming Dynasty gardens, there is a beauty of the shadows from the light. At sunset, the rockworks, peaks, bamboo, cypresses and the other trees and flowers in the garden cast the black shadows of their profiles onto the white wall.
It’s really important to do background work like this before you make your design decisions. So it’s great to see that you’ve put time into this!
By the end of next week, it would probably be a good idea to know exactly what you will be doing in order to complete the project: i.e., conceptual design approved by client, detailed design, procurement list, implementation schedule. This will leave 2 weeks for you to implement the project – plenty of time to fix any problems that may arise during the assembly of the barriers.
Keep up the good work!
—SN