About Japanese Garden Gates
To the Japanese, creating a garden is an art form. Traditional gardens are considered important, right along side calligraphy and painting. The art form of creating Japanese gardens is handed down through apprenticeships. Gates are very important features in Japanese gardens as they mark the point at which the viewer leaves behind the outside world to enter a retreat or sanctuary. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
-
Traditional Japanese Garden Gates
-
Gates, or gateways, come in pairs in Japanese gardens. Even the smallest of gardens has a main and back entry, or soji-guchi, used for maintenance and cleaning purposes. The soji-guchi is not an exterior gate but one created for interior reasons. Exterior boundaries of the garden offer a more elaborate or formal garden gate. Some go as far as having guard houses and wide gates to accommodate more than one person at a time, and others offer a simple but formal single-person gate.
The Different Styles Of Japanese Gates
-
The torii, a traditional Japanese gate, is probably the most recognizable gate for the majority of Westerners. The typical structure of a torii is two columns topped with a horizontal rail and a second horizontal rail just underneath the top one. Torii are typically painted vermillion, a very bright red, and usually mark the entry into a sacred space. Sliding gates, similar to shoji screen panels but made in a more sturdy fashion, roofed gateways with iron gates, and rattan-patterned (called ajiro) gates are also popular.
-
Japanese Garden Gate Materials
-
The style of the garden should dictate the materials for the gate. Giving a Japanese garden gate a nice patina by using older materials adds an allure to the garden. Bamboo, rattan, rail ties, stone, iron, and wood are all good choices. Japanese hinoki cypress is a very good traditional wood for a torii gate.
Creating Your Japanese Garden Gate
-
Consider the purpose of your garden before deciding on the gate. Each material used conveys a particular meaning, the sturdier the material, such as iron, the more forbidding the entrance. Look for traditional Japanese patterns when designing a bamboo, rattan or iron gate. Many torii-style gates include inscriptions across the horizontal rails. The meaning of the inscription usually indicates the type of garden you are entering.
The Oldest Japanese Garden Gates In The U.S.
-
The oldest Japanese garden gates in the U.S are part of the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco. Built originally for the 1894 California International Exposition as part of the Japanese Village, the tea garden was further developed by Makoto Hagiwara, a Japanese landscape gardener. The garden boasts three traditionally crafted gates made of hinoki cypress. The gates are constructed without the use of western carpentry, which means they were created without nails.
-
