Unlike the West, Chinese classical gardens grew out of the fertile soil of Chinese culture and were deeply influenced by painting, poetry and literature. Due to the direct participation and management of poets and painters, Chinese gardens have been poetic and emotional from the beginning. Chinese painting, especially landscape painting, has the most direct and profound impact on Chinese gardens. It can be said that Chinese gardens have always developed along the lines of painting. There were no theoretical monographs on gardening in ancient China, but there were many theoretical works on painting. These painting theories play a lot of guiding role in gardening. The principle followed in painting theory is nothing less than "Teaching things from the outside, originating from the heart". The external teacher's creation refers to using natural landscapes as a model for creation, while the internal source of creation emphasizes that it is not a plagiarism of natural landscapes from a professional class, but the essence of it must be extracted through the artist's subjective feelings.
In addition to painting, poetry also has a profound influence on Chinese gardening art. Since ancient times, it has been said that poetry and painting have the same origin. Poetry is an invisible painting, and painting is a tangible poem. The influence of poetry on gardening is also reflected in the aspect of "love". Ancient Chinese gardens were mostly created by literati painters, and they inevitably had to reflect the temperament and sentiments of these people. As a class of scholar-bureaucrats, these people undoubtedly reflected the philosophy and ethics of the society at that time. The emphasis on affection and meaning of ancient Chinese philosophy "Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism", the thoughts of respecting nature, escaping reality and pursuing purity and inaction combine to form a quiet and elegant taste, romantic and elegant style and unpretentious temperament and sentiment unique to literati. This also determines the aesthetic thought of "emphasis on emotion" in Chinese gardening.
In summary, the above is only a small part of the characteristics of Chinese and Western garden art. There are more and more essential things waiting for us to discover. The cultural connotations created by human beings over thousands of years are broad, profound and vast. universe. The future world belongs to us, and it is up to us to create the beauty of the future world. The burden on our shoulders is not light. We should embrace this glorious mission with a positive attitude. There is still a long way to go.
A brief analysis of the comparison of Chinese and Western gardens
Abstract: Let’s look at the differences between Chinese gardens and Western gardens from the development history of Chinese and Western gardens, mainly from the culture, layout, architecture and The aesthetic differences between Chinese and Western gardens in the process of visiting gardens highlight the respective characteristics of Chinese and Western gardens.
Keywords: Garden cultural differences
my country’s circle-making has a long history and has established a unique style in the world’s gardens. At the same time, among the world’s gardens, Western gardens have a long history. Their different styles have also attracted much attention, and there are similarities and differences between them.
—The most common similarities between Chinese and Western garden cultures
Both China and the West regard wonderful gardens as paradise on earth. There is a famous Chinese saying: "There is heaven above, and there is Suzhou below." Hangzhou.
"If half of Hangzhou's scenery is natural scenery, then most of Suzhou's is artificial gardens. Private gardens already embody the meaning of "paradise", let alone royal gardens. This is incompatible with Western concepts. It's similar. Because the word "paradise" in English comes from the ancient Greek word Paradeisos, and this word comes from the ancient Persian Pairidaeza, which means "luxurious garden", which means "paradise". Almost all human beings have the same concept. At the same time, both China and the West regard gardens as a symbol of power and political emotional sustenance.
2. Differences in Chinese and Western garden cultures
1. , Differences in worldviews
Chinese people value overall harmony, while Westerners value differences in analysis. Chinese philosophy emphasizes the unity of opposites of things, and emphasizes the harmonious relationship between man and nature, and between people. It advocates the independence of the objective world and the separation of subjectivity and objectivity. Dialectical thinking in ancient China is much more developed than in the West. This way of thinking focuses on the overall concept and the unity of opposites. Both Confucianism and Taoism focus on observing from the overall perspective. Things, focusing on the connection between things. Both Laozi and Confucius paid attention to the opposites and their mutual transformation when observing things. The ancient Chinese penetrated this concept of cosmic patterns into garden activities, thus forming a unique group space art.
Compared with the clear and objective eloquence of the West, most of the ancient Chinese philosophers had the style of Taoism and Buddhism, and they never had a clear answer. In gongbi, Chinese people pay attention to harmony, and "the one who enjoys it is the harmony of heaven and earth." Therefore, in gardening, they also pay attention to implication, depth, and illusion, especially the interplay of reality and reality, which has become a major feature of Chinese gardens. Western gardens are square and rigorous, with straight axes. , a clear view. However, Chinese gardens pay attention to "changing the scene with each step". Even a small garden can have a great depth of field even if it is covered up. The secret lies in hiding but not revealing.
2. Differences in the view of nature:
The mainstream of traditional Chinese philosophy is the harmony between man and nature. "Yi Zhuan" proposes the coordination of heaven and man, and its "Xiang Zhuan" states: "The way of tailoring the heaven and earth, supporting "It is suitable for the heaven and the earth", and "Xi Ci": "The range of heaven and earth is transformed without being limited, and the music is transformed into all things without being left behind." "Restraining nature must conform to its own laws, assisting nature in moderation, imitating nature's creation function without going too far, and using it to achieve all things without any deficiency. This is all about man's progress and maintenance of nature, moderation and harmony, and the need for interaction among differences. And change. The idea of ??advocating nature first manifests in the special aesthetic taste of the Chinese people. Although the aesthetic principle of peace and nature is based on the scale of human nature, it is also inseparable from the idea of ??advocating nature, such as gardening. The essence of "Borrowing scenery" is "The beauty of scenery outside the garden lies in 'borrowing', and the beauty of scenery outside the scenery lies in 'time'. Flower shadows, tree shadows, cloud shadows, wind sounds, bird songs, flower fragrances, invisible scenery, tangible scenery, Intertwined into a song. "It can be seen that traditional Chinese gardens are just as clever and wonderful as this. They obviously create mountains, water, and gardens artificially, but they also use flowers, birds, insects, fish, and strange mountains and thin water to create something "like the sky is open, as pure as nature itself." Especially in gardens in the south of the Yangtze River, the smaller the garden, the more emphasis is placed on the beauty of nature. Bai Juyi built a thatched cottage in Lushan and wrote a poem: "Why wash my ears with a falling spring? Why clean my eyes with white lotus growing under the bricks?" A pot with five strings held in the right hand... A tired bird returns to a lush forest, and a dry fish returns to a clear spring. How can one go without this? There are so many hardships and dangers in the world. "This ideal of Chinese literati has turned into human fireworks and turned into private gardens. Even royal gardens have more leisure and fun than Western royal gardens.
3. The layout of Chinese and Western gardens Differences
The biggest difference in the overall layout of Chinese and Western classical gardens is whether it emphasizes natural scenery or architecture. The outstanding feature of classical gardening art represented by the French Court Painting Academy is that it is very flat in its composition. Emphasize the central axis in the middle of the garden. The avenues, flower beds, pools, fountains, statues, etc. in the garden are all arranged around this central axis, emphasizing this central axis.
But on the whole, the differences in form and style between Chinese and Western gardens are very obvious because they are governed by different philosophies and aesthetic ideas. Western gardens embody artificial beauty. Not only are the layouts symmetrical, regular, and rigorous, but even the flowers and plants are trimmed squarely, thus presenting a geometric beauty. Phenomenally speaking, Western gardening is mainly based on artificial methods. change its natural state. Chinese gardens are completely different. They neither seek axial symmetry nor have any rules to follow. On the contrary, they are surrounded by mountains and rivers, winding and twisting. Not only the flowers, plants and trees are left to their natural appearance, but even the artificial buildings are staggered and in compliance with nature as much as possible. Strive to integrate with nature.
Since it is gardening, it cannot be separated from nature, but the attitudes towards nature in China and the West are very different. Although natural beauty is also mentioned in Western aesthetic works, it is only a kind of material or source of beauty. Natural beauty itself is flawed and cannot reach perfection without artificial transformation. In other words, natural beauty itself does not have the ability to be independent. aesthetic significance. All things in nature are in themselves. Without the conscious mind infusing life and the conceptual unity of the theme into some different and juxtaposed parts, the characteristics of ideal beauty cannot be seen. Therefore, natural beauty must have flaws and cannot be sublimated into artistic beauty. Gardens are artificially created and should be transformed according to your will to achieve perfection.
The Chinese people’s discovery and exploration of natural beauty follows another approach. Chinese people mainly seek certain aspects of nature that can fit in with people's aesthetic mood and arouse excitement. The establishment of the Chinese people's natural aesthetics can be traced back to the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. Specific historical conditions forced the scholar-bureaucrat class to be indifferent to politics and invite people to visit the mountains and forests and express their feelings for the mountains and rivers. Therefore, they used "emotion" as a medium to realize the beauty contained in the lakes and mountains. Extremely rich in natural beauty.
To sum up, Chinese and Western gardens are two shining pearls in the treasure house of world art. Due to different cultural backgrounds and geographical environments, they have followed two completely different development trajectories. With the development of society, , the exchange and integration of Chinese and Western cultures, the integration and development of Chinese and Western gardens are inevitable trends. Only by truly grasping the differences between Chinese and Western gardens and absorbing the essence of their art can we scientifically inherit the outstanding achievements of classical gardens and develop new modern gardens. new situation.
Gardens, like architecture, are art categories closely related to people’s daily lives. There are various forms of gardens all over the world.
Gardens are constructed to satisfy people’s need to yearn for nature and enjoy the beauty of nature. Therefore, the aesthetic function of gardens is more prominent than that of buildings.
What is a garden? A garden is a natural scene that has been processed by human beings. It is a realm of human life created by using natural and human factors. It is a poetic and comprehensive artwork composed of landscapes, flowers, trees, and buildings for people to enjoy and visit.
According to the explanation in the "Encyclopedia of China" (Construction, Gardening, Urban Planning Volume): Gardening is the use of engineering technology and artistic means in a certain area to transform the terrain (or further build mountains, A beautiful natural environment and recreational realm are created by stacking stones, arranging water), planting trees and flowers, building buildings and laying out garden paths.
Gardens include gardens, house gardens, small amusement parks, gardens, parks, botanical gardens, zoos, etc. With the development of the gardening discipline, forest parks, scenic spots, nature reserves or national park tourist areas, and health resorts have all been included in the scope of gardening.
Influenced by traditional culture, Eastern and Western classical gardens have different aesthetic ideals. Different attitudes towards natural beauty lead to great differences in gardening ideas and artistic techniques.
Chinese classical gardens are world-famous for their unique gardening ideas and techniques. Broadly speaking, the Five Famous Mountains (Taishan, Hengshan, Songshan, Huashan and Hengshan), Huangshan and the Four Famous Buddhist Mountains (Putuo Mountain, Emeishan, Wutai Mountain and Jiuhuashan Mountain) have been built and managed over the past dynasties, and can be regarded as large-scale natural gardens. .
When people mention gardens, they mostly refer to classical royal gardens and private gardens. For example, there are four famous classical gardens in China: the Summer Palace in Beijing, the Summer Resort in Chengde, the Humble Administrator's Garden and the Lingering Garden in Suzhou.
The Old Summer Palace is known as the "Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens" and the "Oriental Museum". Nowadays, the splendor of the Old Summer Palace is long gone, but from the Summer Palace and Summer Resort, we can still feel the grand scale and splendid royal style of Chinese classical royal gardens.
The gardening art of classical Chinese gardens uses artificial power to imitate natural scenery. As the saying goes, "Although it is made by humans, it is like it was created by heaven." Compared with royal gardens, Suzhou's private gardens can better reflect this point.
Private gardens are the essence of ancient Chinese gardening art. Suzhou is a famous historical and cultural city in my country. Due to its beautiful mountains and rivers and charming classical gardens, it enjoys the reputation of "the gardens south of the Yangtze River are the best in the world, and the gardens of Suzhou are the best in the south of the Yangtze River".
The ancient city of Suzhou has many gardens. Canglang Pavilion, Lion Grove Garden, Humble Administrator's Garden and Liuyuan Garden respectively represent the artistic styles of the four dynasties of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties and are known as the "Four Famous Gardens" in Suzhou. In addition, Master of Nets Garden and Yiyuan Garden It is also quite famous.
"Artistic conception" is the highest state of Chinese gardening art. Chinese garden works often have names that are full of poetic or historical allusions. The garden landscape, architecture and decorative plaques, poems, calligraphy and paintings complement each other, creating an aesthetic mood with cultural taste.
The ancient buildings with Chinese characteristics such as pavilions, terraces, buildings, pavilions, pavilions, and pavilions, rockeries, corridors, flower walls, and transparent windows all reflect the unique style. Borrowing methods such as borrowing from near, borrowing from far, borrowing from neighbors, borrowing from each other, borrowing from above, borrowing from above, and borrowing according to the situation are used. Scenery such as water, buildings, plants, etc. can be used to move tourists, even sunrise, sunset, clouds, rain, etc. Snow, wind, rising sun and bright moon are all integrated into the garden. Reflections in the water, fishing boats singing in the evening, ancient temple bells, birds singing and cicadas chirping, residual lotuses in the night rain, which one is not a freehand landscape?
The architectural form of Japanese classical gardens is learned from China, but it more embodies the idea of ??Zen Buddhism - Dry Landscape. Dry landscape is an extension of Japanese gardens born out of China. Many concepts come from Zen Buddhism, which is also closely related to the introduction of ancient mainland culture.
The traditional Western aesthetics believes that natural beauty is not the most ideal beauty and must be artificially transformed to achieve perfection. As the famous French gardening master Le Notte said: "Nature must be forced to accept the law of uniformity." This has also become the basic tenet of Western gardening art.
The gardening art of Italy, France, and the United Kingdom is a typical representative of Western garden art. The gardening art of Western gardens completely rejects nature, strives to embody rigorous rationality, and meticulously develops in accordance with pure geometric structures and mathematical relationships.
Building materials used in Chinese and Western classical gardens. Traditional Chinese architecture is mainly made of earth and wood, while Western classical architecture is mainly made of stone. In terms of layout, most traditional Chinese buildings are arranged in groups that spread out on the plane, while Western classical architecture emphasizes upward straightness and highlights individual buildings.
“What determines beauty and elegance is proportion, which must be formulated into eternal and stable rules using mathematical methods.” This is the highest aesthetic standard of Western gardening art. The aesthetic standard of Chinese classical gardens is "the unity of nature and man".
To sum up, it is not difficult to see that if the gardening technique of Chinese classical gardens is "artificial imitation of nature", the gardening technique of Western classical gardens is "artificial transformation of nature".