(Part.2) Japanese Garden Tour with Reflections: Recalling Two Years of Our Creations

Second Part!! In this video, I would like to look back on two years of creating Japanese gardens. A total of three videos will look back on the project!
I hope you enjoy them.

施工庭師：佐野友厚 / Tomoatsu Sano
Video:

https://www.instagram.com/sano_tomoatsu_niwa/

施工庭師：田中直志 / Naoshi Tanaka
Video:

施工庭師：渡邊郁 / Iku Watanabe
Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8-4beJSYI0&t=596s

Please send inquiries to this e-mail address.
niwayama.plan@gmail.com

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・ Video editing software：　DaVinci Resolve
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Continuing from the previous video, I would like to look back on the past two years’ worth of garden projects with my impressions and how things were going at the time. Looking back, there are more things I want to tell you

And it has become longer, but I hope you will enjoy it to the end. This time, Mr. Sano will create a garden with miscellaneous trees at this location. A garden with miscellaneous trees is the most trendy form of Japanese garden in Japan today.

In Japanese gardens, one of the most important concepts that has been followed since long ago is to create a garden with reference to the natural landscape. Under this concept, classical gardens have abstracted natural landscapes, using ponds as seas or stones as mountains.

Since those times, Japanese gardens have continued to change and become more like nature. In modern times, Japanese people have come to prefer to cut out landscapes from natural forests and woodlands and reproduce them exactly as they are in their own gardens. I personally believe that this is the garden of miscellaneous trees.

The plants used, such as Quercus serrata, Quercus acutissima, Momiji, and Japanese ash, are those that grow in the forest. Of course, it is impossible to describe all ecosystems here, but we are conscious of the fact that the ecosystems are the same as those in the forests and woodlands.

First, we plant tall Quercus serrata and Quercus acutissima first. These trees are relatively strong in sunlight, so they are placed high up in the garden to catch the sun, thereby creating shadows over the entire garden.

Then, conversely, we will plant momiji trees and other trees that are weak in sunlight under the shadow of these trees so that they will grow thin. Understanding the characteristics of each tree in this way, many Niwashis have gone through a process of trial and error

In order to realize the natural relationships found in forests and woodlands in this garden. The important thing for such a garden is not to consider it finished when it is finished, but to maintain and manage it as if it were finished five to ten years down the road.

By doing so, the ideal natural landscape can be created along with the growth of trees, plants, and flowers. This way of thinking, I think, is very typical of Japanese gardens. This time, thanks to the owner’s consideration, I was able to take shots of how the garden looks one year later.

Although not much has changed yet, the plants and trees have grown little by little, giving the impression that the garden as a whole has become more familiar with the surroundings. I hope to be able to show you how the garden will change again when the trees take root firmly.

This is a newly built hot spa facility in Kawagoe. Currently, the area is just planted with trees, but since the view is from the restaurant, the client wanted to put a little more effort into the garden. Mr. Tanaka has created a lot of Japanese gardens ranging from beautiful to exquisite.

He has also created in other countries beyond Japan. Mr. Tanaka often says, “Create unexpected things. In Japan, beautiful Japanese gardens are everywhere in the city, and for many Japanese, even the scenery is taken for granted.

Therefore, he believes that it is important to create unexpected gardens to catch the eye and interest of visitors in such a commercial facility where so many people come and go. I, too, have been watching Mr. Tanaka’s garden creation, and I have no idea what is going to happen next.

Everything is unexpected for me, too. The speed and quality of Mr. Tanaka’s work is overwhelming. He created this stone object in no time. I think he is probably one of the fastest in Japan. Mr. Tanaka moves so quickly, and because I never know what he is going to do next,

I find myself constantly following his movements with my eyes. Perhaps Mr. Tanaka’s presence itself is unexpected. That is why everyone is after him. This was an unexpected Japanese garden created by such an unexpected man, Naoshi Tanaka. Newly built modern building house.

I was able to film the process of creating the garden, or Roji, leading up to the tea ceremony room in the building. The Niwashi is Iku Watanabe. Mr. Watanbe is based in Kyoto, but this time he traveled to Shizuoka to do the work.

Mr. Watanabe and the client had a strong desire for the garden, and they worked together to select the materials and completed the garden together. What is particularly impressive about Mr. Watanabe’s work is that he was able to create his own unique view of the world in the garden.

The garden he created this time is a simple design with a single hand basin, a single red pine tree, and stepping stones. At first glance, a simple garden may look easy to create, but it is very difficult because it is simple and cannot be cheated.

Simply setting stones and planting pine trees according to the drawings will not create an attractive Japanese garden. Mr. Watanabe earnestly considered the direction, height, and angle of each stone as he proceeded with the work.

The stones for the main feature of this project, the hand basin, were carefully installed and re-installed over and over again, trying various things. These stones cannot be easily moved by hand. Therefore, even minor adjustments are very difficult and time-consuming.

In fact, I think it took as much as three hours to install this hand basin. However, he wanted to install this stone in a cool way, even if he had to spend that much time and effort. Also, he wanted to make this place a wonderful space for the client.

With this obsession, he worked on the garden little by little. I believe that each creator’s view of the world is born from the process of focusing, refining, and continuing to do so. In that aspect, I felt that Mr. Watanabe’s garden, with its unique worldview, is created

Because he continues to be particular about each stone, each plant, and each underbrush. I could see the cool side of a good Niwashi in the way he worked step by step, even on hot and rainy days, to improve the details of his work.