What are the differences between Chinese and Western garden landscaping design concepts Characteristics of Chinese and Western garden landscaping

Chinese and Western gardens due to the historical background and cultural traditions of different styles, each with its own characteristics. Although Chinese gardens have northern royal gardens and private gardens in the south of the Yangtze River, and presents many differences, and western gardens due to the different stages of historical development of ancient, medieval, renaissance gardens and other different styles. But as a whole, Chinese and Western gardens are governed by different philosophical and aesthetic ideas, and the differences in their forms and styles are still very distinct. Especially in the 15th to 17th century Italian Renaissance gardens and French classical gardens and Chinese classical gardens between the differences are more significant.

Artificial beauty/natural beauty

The difference between Chinese and Western gardens is very obvious from the formal point of view. Western gardens reflect the artificial beauty, not only the layout of symmetry, rules, strict, even the flowers and plants are trimmed square, thus presenting a geometric pattern of beauty, from the phenomenon of the Western gardening is mainly based on the use of artificial methods to change its natural state. Chinese gardens are completely different, neither the axis of symmetry, there is no rule to follow, on the contrary, is the mountains surrounded by water, winding, not only flowers and trees any natural appearance, even if the artificial building also try to follow nature and the staggering.

Humanization of nature/natural anthropomorphism

Since it is a garden, it can not be separated from nature, but the attitude of China and the West to nature is very different. Western aesthetic writings also mentioned natural beauty, but it is only a material or source of beauty, natural beauty itself is defective, non-artificial transformation, it will not achieve perfection, that is to say, the natural beauty itself does not have an independent aesthetic significance.

The beauty of the form and the beauty of the mood

Because of the different attitudes towards natural beauty, reflected in the pursuit of the art of gardening has its own focus. Western gardening is not lacking in poetry, but deliberately pursued is the beauty of form; Chinese gardening also emphasizes the form, but the pursuit of the beauty of the mood. Westerners believe that natural beauty has defects, in order to overcome such defects and achieve perfection, must rely on a certain concept to enhance the natural beauty, so as to achieve the height of artistic beauty. That is, a form of beauty.

Necessity/contingency

Western gardening follows the law of formal beauty, deliberately pursuing the beauty of geometric patterns, necessarily presents a geometric system of relationships, such as axis symmetry, balance and the determination of geometric shapes, such as straight lines, squares, circles, triangles, etc. are widely used. Although the combination of changes can be varied before the change, there are still rules to follow.

Chinese gardening is to go far away from the natural landscape of the road, the pursuit of poetry and painting the same realm. If it is also very focused on the landscape, then its materials, original shape, source, inspiration, etc. can only go to nature to explore. The more in line with the natural nature of things will contain rich meaning. Therefore, Chinese gardening has a great deal of randomness and chance.

Clear/ambiguous

Western gardens are clear and focused, the relationship between each part is clear and certain, the boundaries and spatial scopes are obvious, and the spatial sequences are distinct, which gives people the impression of order and clarity. The main reason is that the western garden pursuit of formal beauty, follow the law of formal beauty shows a regularity and inevitability, but all regularity will give people a clear sense of order. In addition, westerners are good at logical thinking, things used to analyze the method to reveal its essence, this social ideology greatly affects people's aesthetic habits and concepts.

Chinese gardening is concerned about the implicit, illusory, implicit but not revealed, beyond the meaning of words, outside the sound, so that people are in the illusion of its confusing and inexhaustible, which is naturally the Chinese people's aesthetic habits and perceptions make it so.