Research Pavilion:
Research, Critical Practice & Reflection
Garden
In the course of human civilization, garden has always played a significant role between nature and society. Stemming from the nature, a garden is actually a fairyland elaborately designed by people. It is a private space for us to stay away from the crowd, but at the same time, an open and ideal place for social contact.
In the cross-cultural background, garden has become the perfect carrier for me to present and explore the relationship between human and nature.
Just as Geoffrey Grigson said, "Gardening, after all, is one index of the history of men”, even if it stresses design, botany, hydraulics and sculpture. People develop a place because we treasure our residence; to be more specific, we have found our identity and sense of belonging in the course of colonization and farming. This is exactly the meaning of culture. (Culture comes from the Latin word: colere)
What also noteworthy is that the garden influences each other across regions and cultures. For example, gardens of China and Japan generally stay in harmony as the latter was originally exposed to Chinese tradition. They are both featured by expressing nature by virtue of miniature of real environment and metaphor.
Moreover, a more subtle and complex matter is the effect Chinese garden style had on Europe. This style found an unambiguous expression in the garden architecture of the 18th century, whose forms and decorations had begun to display a vaguely Chinese taste by midcentury.
This is also reflected in the garden transformation from regular geometric figure to artistic nature, which may be attributed to the early Jesuits who spread the information of Chinese garden in Europe. Such aesthetic interpretation and recomposition of the elements of nature was well received among Europeans. Joseph Addison(1672-1719), politician and writer, affirmed in 1712 that the Chinese “chuse [sic] rather to shew [sic] a Genius in Works of Nature, and therefore always conceal the Art by which they direct themselves”. Chinese are master of refining aesthetics on the basis of exquisite imitation. Behind the natural and seemingly random scenes, it is extraordinarily thoughtful arrangement.
This greatly affects my materials selection for artistic works. To present mountains and rocks, I employ copper mesh and steel mesh whose raw materials both come from mountain and mine. They originate from nature, while being polished by modern civilization later. This is undoubtedly a fantastic metaphor for the dual properties of society and nature.
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1 MINE 2 COPPER 3 COPPER MESH
Different from the traditional geometric layout, the British garden has blossomed out into natural, lively and seemingly unorganized garden style. At first glance, it may bear striking similarities with that of China. Nevertheless, tracing their source, their praise nature in diverse ways. British people pay epic compliment to the garden born in rich countryside, while Chinese demonstrate a superior natural order.
Kew Garden
Three basic elements
There are three basic components of the traditional Chinese garden: mountain (rock), water and pavilion. Interestingly, the same is true to gardens of many other regions, particularly the first two.
According to ancient animistic beliefs, rocks were the earth’s skeleton and rivers its arter
ies, living elements that were complementary in the harmony of the cosmos. Water and
mountains represented the fertile juxtaposition between yin and yang, the dualism of the
feminine and masculine aspects present in all natural phenomena. The robust vigor of
rocks evinced the solid masculine element, while water’s fluidity suggested the change-
able feminine. As far as I am concerned, mountain and water is a microcosm of nature, while a pavilion turns into the joint of nature and people when they halt steps, look up and enjoy the scenery before their eyes. The pavilions dotting the garden denote the human presence in nature and the central role of the individual in the imaginative and poetical interpretation of the landscape.
Hence, my artistic work takes these three elements as the foundation, because I hope the work is simple yet powerful in visual language without redundancy. When drafting, I give high priority to mountain and water.
Mounds and Rocky Compositions：
In traditional Chinese culture, the mountain is sanctified by people who prefer for constructing temples and monasteries on the mountain where, in their opinion, is a sacred place for immortals. This is the reason why some of these buildings may be located in places not even suitable for people to live. Naturally, magnificent mountains give rise to a sense of worship of nature which transcends human power. It reminds me of the Cathedral Rock in Yosemite National Park of America.
Hillstone is the core of vision, so I tried and modified its design for many times. Originally two different forms were adopted: one is to display the boundless landscape of mountain and river, and the other is to place a huge Taihu stone at a traditional garden. In regard to material selection, I abandon real stones which may appear too bulky and straightforward as I expect to offer more room for imagination. This goes in line with the artistic technique of metaphor. Plus, in the Anthropocene, the landscape has been transformed due to excessive human events. Using a natural stone as the ancients is no longer consistent with the times.
Therefore, I employ copper mesh and steel mesh whose raw materials both come from mountain and mine. They originate from nature, while being polished by modern civilization later. This is undoubtedly a fantastic metaphor for the dual properties of society and nature.
The transparent mesh produces infinite changes in space, while the stacking up of multiple meshes demonstrates the implication and layering of traditional Chinese landscape paintings，stately, gentle and full of changes.
During the trials, I received a lot of valuable feedback. Kira suggested not sticking to the specific shape, but paying attention to a more organic and abstract form, so as to strengthen the material itself in the work. This prompted me to re-examine the final presentation of work. On suggestion of Felicity, the shape of hillstone could be retained, to avoid weakening its visual symbolic significance too much; meanwhile, by arranging 2 to 3 shapes together, the work could simulate overlapping of mountains at different distances. Duncan also noted that the work should not be designed with a single modeling. Taking all advices into consideration, I therefore struck a balance between mountains and rocks, concrete and abstract, single and multiple, for this work.
Water:
The importance of water to garden is self-evident. It can be found in gardens of almost all civilizations. Tracing back to the amazing irrigation system of Hanging Gardens of Babylon, you can see that water is not only necessary for functioning but also an indispensable design for the garden.
In nature, water exists in ecological chains by circulation, maintaining the running of entire system in different forms. Hence, I take the different forms of water in circulation as important elements throughout my work. First, like raindrops dripping down from the top to rocks, water runs through the wire mesh as if absorbed by the earth and rock. In this process, a small part of water is stuck to the mesh, gradually evaporating and finally disappearing. The remaining water flowing down and gathering in the basin is like entering the sea and lake through underground and stream. After that, the water in basin circulates back to the top by tube inside, as if water in lake evaporates into the air and nourish the living things
Water:
The importance of water to garden is self-evident. It can be found in gardens of almost all civilizations. Tracing back to the amazing irrigation system of Hanging Gardens of Babylon, you can see that water is not only necessary for functioning but also an indispensable design for the garden.
In nature, water exists in ecological chains by circulation, maintaining the running of entire system in different forms. Hence, I take the different forms of water in circulation as important elements throughout my work. First, like raindrops dripping down from the top to rocks, water runs through the wire mesh as if absorbed by the earth and rock. In this process, a small part of water is stuck to the mesh, gradually evaporating and finally disappearing. The remaining water flowing down and gathering in the basin is like entering the sea and lake through underground and stream. After that, the water in basin circulates back to the top by tube inside, as if water in lake evaporates into the air and nourish the living things
Pavilion:
"Pavilions are special places for observing the surrounding arrangements; for this purpose their external walls are pierced by several windows, which are in turn screened by wooden latticework panels. The geometric design of the wooden panels contrasts with the natural forms glimpsed through the windows .
The structures built in gardens are of diverse types, dimensions and functions, ranging from little structures for resting, meditating or simply stopping, to more elaborate archi-tectural works, sometimes of more than one storey, for tea rooms, libraries, studies or guest-lodging.
They can be the simple resting points from which a scenic view can be enjoyed, like ting,
little single-storied pavilions open on all sides."
The whole work is regarded as a pavilion so its structure is simplified as much as possible. Unlike a traditional one where people stop and look outside in the pavilion, this work allows people to watch from the opposite direction.
Apart from the artistic vision, I need to give consideration to the stability of the work, so it takes a long time for me to scrutinize the material selection and structure design. Many different schemes are put forth in the process.
The initial structure looking like a birdcage is stable but the size is rather small for convenience transportation; besides, excessive structures greatly affect the visual presentation of the core part. As a result, this scheme was finally abolished.
Plants:
In form, a 5-meter long scroll is hung around the installation, which portrays trees from forests in the Ockley region of England. When a visitor drifts and watches along the scroll, he will be immersed in the never-ending landscape. Against the natural light, the transparent texture of tracing paper enables the two sides of scroll to present a British forest in different shading. Such flow of time and space is exactly the subtlety of traditional Chinese painting.
The drawing is both a landscape and a wall, and is man-made and natural. Both in a Chinese garden or a European garden, plants are used as a partition between different views.
Not just a celebration of nature's greatness, but also a reflection on reality
Trees’ services to this planet range from carbon storage and soil conservation to water cycle regulation. They support natural and human food systems and provide homes for countless species – including us, through building materials. Yet we often treat trees as disposable: as something to be harvested for economic gain or as an inconvenience in the way of human development. Since our species began practicing agriculture around 12,000 years ago, we’ve cleared nearly half of the world’s estimated 5.8 trillion trees, according to a 2015 study published in the journal Nature.
In my drawing, all of trees are dead without leaves. In fact, like the ash which I depict is also dead in real life.
When I found it near the house I lived ,it looks so maginficent,powerfull,sad ,yet full of life. It is well known that ash is under serious threat.Ash dieback will kill around 80% of ash trees across the UK. At a cost of billions, the effects will be staggering. It will change the landscape forever and threaten many species which rely on ash.
Bibliography
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Series: Penn studies in landscape architecture:Publisher: Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, [2013]Description: xv, 173 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.ISBN: 0812222148; 9780812222142.
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Chinese influence on European garden structures.
Publisher: New York : Hacker Art Books, 1985.ISBN: 0878172971.Note: Originally published, Cambridge, 1936.
The World of the Japanese garden : from Chinese origins to modern landscape art / Loraine Kuck; with color photographs by Takeji Iwamiya.
Publisher: New York ; John Weatherhill, 1968.
The Chinese garden : history, art & architecture / Maggie Keswick ; contributions and conclusion by Charles Jencks.
Publisher: London : Academy Editions, 1978.Description: 216 pages : illustrations (some colour) ; 32 cm
Interlacing words and things : bridging the nature-culture opposition in gardens and landscape / Stephen Bann, editor.
by Bann, Stephen [editor.]; (33rd : Dumbarton Oaks Colloquium on the History of Landscape Architecture 2009).
Publisher: Washington, D.C. : Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, [2012]Description: vi, 174 pages : illustrations (some colour) ; 27 cm.ISBN: 0884023699; 9780884023692.