Penguin Environmental Design

Craving a Tranquil Escape in Your Backyard? Turn it into a Healing Garden!

Feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or simply disconnected from nature? You’re not alone. But what if you could create a personal sanctuary right outside your door – a healing garden designed to bring peace and rejuvenation to your life? We, as specialists in healing spaces, help you get an idea of your healing garden. Thanks to technology, […]

Imperfection in Japanese gardens

“The flow of the river never ceases, and the water never stays the same…” This is the opening phrase of Hojoki, a famous Japanese essay by Kamono Chomei in the 13 century. Almost all Japanese children learn this in their schools. I think that transience is something that many Japanese hold in their minds, which […]

Cultivating Peace: How Japanese Gardens Foster Cross-Cultural Understanding

Gardens for Peace

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 in Japanese garden

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 […]

Our Talk at Shofuso on the Japanese Time-Space Concept & Mindfulness

Our Talk at Shofuso on the Japanese Time-Space Concept & Mindfulness

Takaya Kurimoto and Yoko Kawai of PED had the pleasure to give an online live talk at Shofuso, a Japanese house with a garden, hosted by the Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia. Our talk examined how the concept of Michiyuki, traveling or procession in Japanese, could help us be aware of the present moment. […]

Japanese + Modern

Sign-up