Classical Gardens of Suzhou in Jiangsu Province, China
In China, the historic city of Suzhou is a place that is well-known and world renowned to be the “City of Gardens”. These classical gardens of Suzhou are the most refined representations of the art of classical garden design with beautiful landscape. Classical Chinese garden design, which seeks to recreate natural landscapes in miniature, is nowhere better illustrated than in the nine gardens in the historic city of Suzhou. They are generally acknowledged to be masterpieces of the genre. Dating from the 11th-19th century, the gardens reflect the profound metaphysical importance of natural beauty in Chinese culture in their meticulous design. The gardens are delicate and were built for private use by aristocrats and rich businessmen. Garden design went through an active period during the Ming Dynasty and by the time of the Qing Dynasty, a large number of classical gardens were spread across Suzhou and its suburbs.
Ten of these gardens are still in a good state of preservation including the Humble Administrator’s Garden (Zhuozheng Garden) , the Lingering Garden (Liu Garden) , the Garden of the Master of the Nets (Wangshi Garden), the Villa with Embracing Beauty (Huanxiu Mountain Villa), the Blue Wave Pavilion (Canglang Pavilion) , the Lion Grove Garden (Shizilin), the Garden of Pleasance (Yi Garden) and the Couple’s Garden Retreat (Ou Garden). These gardens exhibit a typical character of classical gardens like structure, style, cultural attainment, aesthetics and arrangement of the furniture.
The gardens are composed of two parts; a residential section and a garden. Pavilions, ponds, bridges, rockeries, stone and fragrant flowers are added to the garden so that they will replicate a natural environment on a miniature scale but full of life. The artistic layout of the gardens is combined perfectly with Chinese philosophy and ideology and shows the architectural culture of the Orient. Each small plot of the garden is arranged orderly and lyric pictures and poems are reflected in the themes of the gardens. Steles and parallel couplets of halls or names of rooms sometimes show the masters’ aspirations, interests, and ideals or followings of Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian thoughts or philosophy. Using unique skills combining architecture with the surrounding scenery, artisans created gardens that are tranquil havens away from the world’s turmoil. Very often tourists think they have reached the last building of a garden, only to discover another harmonious landscape when they pass through the room and along a zigzag corridor. Each door and window of the rooms is decorated with carvings. Residential rooms are usually decorated with Suzhou-styled bonsais and parallel couplets. The classical gardens demonstrate the living habits and etiquette of ancient Chinese peoples of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.