The Chinese Garden traces the compositional principles, plant palettes, and spatial logic of the Chinese garden tradition from its surviving historical examples through to contemporary projects by figures including I.M. Pei and Ai Weiwei.
About This Book
Garden traditions are rarely studied on their own terms by practising designers. Botanical surveys and art-historical accounts dominate the literature, leaving the landscape architect without a working understanding of how these spaces are actually composed. This volume addresses that gap directly, approaching the Chinese garden as a living design resource rather than a historical artefact. Bianca Maria Rinaldi examines the underlying compositional principles and plant typologies that define the tradition, then demonstrates their application in contemporary landscape design — from the celebrated gardens at the Bank of China in Hong Kong to Ai Weiwei's Yiwu Riverbank Park and Chinese-inspired gardens in Los Angeles and Portland. The result is a book equally useful as a reference and as a source of genuine design inspiration.
Key Features
- 175 pages of comparative landscape analysis, historical garden documentation, and contemporary project references
- Author: Bianca Maria Rinaldi
- Notable projects include: Bank of China garden, Hong Kong (I.M. Pei); Ai Weiwei's Yiwu Riverbank Park; Garden of Flowering Fragrance, Los Angeles; Garden of Awakening Orchids, Portland
- Published by Birkhauser, ISBN: 9783034602228
What You'll Discover
- The essential compositional principles of the Chinese garden tradition, drawn from centuries of surviving historical examples
- How specific plant species are characteristically used within Chinese garden design and what roles they play spatially and symbolically
- How contemporary designers — from I.M. Pei to Ai Weiwei — have translated classical Chinese garden logic into modern landscape projects
- A design-led methodology for engaging with historical garden traditions that moves beyond botanical or art-historical frameworks
About the Author
Bianca Maria Rinaldi is the author of this volume. [Details available upon request]
Specifications
- Format: Hardcover
- Pages: 175
- Dimensions: 305 x 235 mm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9783034602228
- Publisher: Birkhauser
- Publication Date: [Details available upon request]
Perfect For: Landscape architects and garden designers seeking a design-led understanding of Chinese garden traditions, and academics studying cross-cultural approaches to contemporary landscape practice.