Harmony between a garden and a house
庭屋一如 (tei-oku-ichi-nyo) – This is the word expressing a harmonious condition of a garden and a house. I think that many Japanese garden designers consider it a fundamental principle. Traditionally, houses in Japan were designed to achieve comfort in hot summer. This kind of house is a post and beam structure. So, its’ facades can […]
Cultivating Peace: How Japanese Gardens Foster Cross-Cultural Understanding
The world feels heavy with conflict right now, from the war in Ukraine to the ongoing struggles in Gaza. Amidst this tension, the concept of peace can seem distant. However, there are beautiful and unexpected ways to cultivate peace, and one such avenue lies in the art of Japanese garden design. The North American Japanese […]
Shishi-Odoshi as a garden element
Shishi-Odoshi, or scare-deer is a device to frighten deer away. It is a unique garden element that you can see in residential gardens in Japan now. As you see in the photo below, a bamboo tube is set like a seesaw. when the open cut side has water in, the bamboo tube flips. And then […]
“Water in Japanese Gardens” Talk at the Jay Heritage Center
PED’s Takaya Kurimoto gave a talk on “Water in Japanese Gardens” at the Jay Heritage Center for the annual meeting of the Japan Society of Fairfield County (JSFC). Water has been one of the most important elements of Japanese gardens. Even Japanese “dry” gardens have imaginary water. It is the catalyst for taking people to […]
Streets in Japan
I like walking lively shopping streets in Japan. Those streets look like toy boxes. Unexpected encounters wait for us. In October, I had a chance to walk on this kind of street in early morning. Then I noticed some points which many people do not pay attention to.
