Japanese Landscape Style

 The fashion for Japanese gardens existed for a long time, and still interest in this style is not waning. Fundamentals of Japanese style borrowed from the Chinese, which asians further developed in accordance with their world vision.

The first Japanese gardens created sages and philosophers. They believed that the disclosure of secrets of life lies in the understanding of nature and its contemplation. In addition, the Japanese have always worshiped the mountains, waterfalls and trees, placing them in a range with same creatures as humans and animals.

Japanese gardens are divided into several types, depending on the basis of accent. It can be gardens of stones, water, trees, seasons, or moss. Mixing these elements in a garden is allowed, herewith great importance is attached to the alignment of stones. Japanese believed that every stone has its own face, his character and placement. Positioning should be from right to left, it is considered that that this is way human’s eyes move.

The best-known example is the garden rock garden of the monastery Reandzi created in the late XV – early XVI century, in the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto. A garden has a rectangular area 23×9 meters, located in front of the house with a veranda. Verandah is a place of contemplation. The background has a low wall behind which groups of trees are located. On the ground, covered with white sand, there are groups of 15 stones. Sand is combed with special rake so that the grooves run parallel to the long side of the garden and form concentric circles around each group of 2-3 or 5 stones.

The most important is that if you look from every part of the veranda, of 15 stones can be simultaneously observed only 14.
In general, the garden creates an impression of the sea, washing the group of islands. Or it seems that you are high above the ground and watch the high mountain peaks through the clouds.

In the compositional and color Japanese gardens are closely associated with painting and need the perception of visual space by the laws of painting. The softness of colors, muted colors make these gardens look like paintings, made one-color ink. Paths, bridges, benches, lighting, fences and gates are integral parts of the garden. They are made of natural materials – bamboo, wood of different species, stone (the most common material), and sometimes of metal, usually iron. Any pained surface, closing the texture of the material, is excluded. “Old age” elements of the landscape are especially appreciated – moss or lichen on a stone, patina or rust on metal, dark-colored wood and Stuff