The Perfect Garden, Kanazawa Japan
The Kenroku-en Garden in Kanazawa is considered to be one of Japan’s most beautiful gardens. It integrates all six elements of a perfect garden, as defined by the ancient Chinese book of gardens: spaciousness, seclusion, panoramas, watercourses, artifice, antiquity. Grouped in complementary pairs, these six elements illustrate three primary tensions in the human experience: space, perspective, and creation.
The three tensions of a perfect garden:
Space: Seclusion <> Spaciousness
Perspective: Watercourses <> Panoramas
Creation: Antiquity <> Artifice
What can the design and experience of a garden teach us about cultivating consciousness in ourselves and each other?