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Discover the Incredible Art of Japanese Gardens

A new book by Phaidon reveals how these exquisite spaces have inspired creative minds across the world

By Jacqueline Terrebonne
Winter 2017
Snow-covered Japanese temple with red bridge reflected in still water, surrounded by snowy trees and mountains.
Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon

Book cover of The Japanese Garden by Sophie Walker, featuring a circular cutout on a dark green background.
The Japanese Garden by Sophie Walker. Courtesy of Phaidon

From ancient Shinto shrines to modern urban parks, The Japanese Garden (Phaidon, $70), by British landscape designer Sophie Walker, explores the essence and diversity of one of the Far East’s most compelling art forms. In Japan, Walker notes, gardens are often sacred spaces, embodying the concepts of wabi-sabi, the acceptance of imperfection, and mitate, the layering of meanings. Essays by architects and artists such as Tadao Ando, John Pawson, and Anish Kapoor (Walker’s husband), along with drawings by David Hockney, Isamu Noguchi, and others, illustrate how these exquisite environments have inspired creative minds across the globe.

Snow-covered path through a bamboo forest with tall green stalks and woven fences on either side.
The Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, in Kyoto. JTB Media Creation Inc./Alamy Stock Photo, Courtesy of Phaidon

Japanese garden landscape with manicured shrubs, rock formations, and lush hills in the background.
Adachi Museum Garden was conceived as a living painting. Courtesy of Phaidon

View of a serene Japanese garden with manicured shrubs and a tranquil pond from a traditional tatami-floored room.
Kyoto‘s Chishaku-in garden boasts an lushly landscaped artificial hill. Courtesy of Phaidon

Golden Pavilion temple surrounded by trees, reflecting on a serene pond in Kyoto, Japan.
The Temple of the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto. Courtesy of Phaidon

Japanese garden with koi pond, lush greenery, rocks, and traditional wooden boat, creating a serene and tranquil atmosphere.
Tairyu-Sanso is a regarded as a prime example of modern Japanese garden design. Courtesy of Phaidon

Wooden bridge leading to a torii gate surrounded by lush greenery in a serene forest setting
The Ise Grand Shrine was built around the ideas of purity and the nonvisible world. Courtesy of Phaidon

Japanese garden with a traditional wooden pavilion, cherry blossoms, pond, and stone pathway under a clear blue sky.
One of Japans’s oldest gardens, Toin Teien was created c. 710–84 and excavated in 1967. Courtesy of Phaidon