Penjing politics

China now boasts the largest economy in the world according to the International Monetary Fund’s purchasing power parity based calculation and the second largest in absolute terms.  Daily headlines remind us that the Chinese and other large economies are interconnected; developments in one market affect the others.

The Nixons meet Zhou in Beijing outside of Air Force One, 1972.  Source: USC- US China Institute.

My recent visit to the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum in Washington, DC reminded me that this was not always the case. 

In the 1960’s China was largely closed to the West.  In a significant gesture to open relations, US President Nixon visited Beijing in 1972.  According to Travel China Guide, “Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai gave a box of Panda brand cigarettes to the First Lady. He said he wanted to give her this present. Mrs. Nixon said she didn't smoke. The Premier said ‘not the cigarette but the giant panda.’ The story ended in an atmosphere of great excitement. A couple of pandas, Ling Ling and Xing Xing, went on their journey to America.”  These were the first of about a dozen pandas given to western countries in what is known as “Panda Diplomacy”.

But panda’s weren’t the only gifts that resulted from Nixon’s 1972 trip to China.  That year, the Chinese also gave the United States a group of century old, living, miniature landscapes, called Penjing.  It is remarkable that during the 1960’s Cultural Revolution, Penjing was looked down upon as a middle class waste of time; entire collections were lost.  Some masters were forced to put down their bonsai tools in order to plant rice.  Thankfully, many plants were guarded to ensure their survival.  By the 1970’s, the art form was again appreciated for its cultural significance.

Presenting living things as gifts is always a tricky affair.  Imagine receiving a valuable plant when the giver regularly asks “how’s the plant doing?” Now consider the pressure when the tree embodies the artistry of generations of masters, and the gift is between two countries trying to establish better relations.  A New York Times headline about the trees captured the pressure perfectly: “Tiny Trees Pose Big Job for Keepers.”

Fortunately, the Chinese gift was passed on to the experts at the US Arboretum where they thrived.  In 1976, the Japanese people added an important collection of bonsai, called the Bicentennial Collection.  Together these became the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum. 

Among those behind the creation of the museum were John Creech, Robert Drechsler, and Marc Cathey.  Arboretum director John Creech’s personal passion was to bring, “ornamental horticulture into the mainstream.” His vision was to create a display of bonsai in an American setting and facilitated the 1976 Japanese gift. 

From the beginning, the person responsible for keeping the plants thriving was Robert “Bonsai Bob” Drechsler.  He was the first curator of the collection and carried out this role for over 20 years.

Marc Cathey -  horticulturalist, author, and a later Arboretum director - pushed to integrate both Penjing and Bonsai into the single comprehensive museum that we enjoy today.  His Washington Post obituary describes him as “a flamboyant promoter of gardening everywhere... tall, dapper, and with ties and handkerchiefs as colorful as his persona.” 

Robert "Bonsai Bob" Drechsler, responsible for keeping the penjing and bonsai thriving. He was the collections first curator and held this position for over 20 years. Source: Bonsai Journal, ABS, Spring 1986, pg. 6

Dr. John Creech added an important Japanese bonsai collection to the US in 1976 - The Bicentennial Collection - and convinced the US government to build a structure to showcase the trees. Source: Capital Bonsai, Aarin Packard.

 

Dr. Marc Cathey championed having both Penjing and Bonsai represented in the collection and built connections with the American bonsai community. Source: Washington Gardener.

Penjing, or “tray scenery” dates back to at least 700 CE in a tradition stemming from Buddhist and Daoist religious ideals.  Penjing tend to have a wide variety of tree shapes and colorful pots.

Buddhist monks and diplomats brought examples back to Japan where the art developed into Bonsai, or “potted tree.”  Bonsai tend to have larger trunks and simpler containers. 

In both cases, artisans manipulate the plant’s trunk size and branch shape to replicate features of a wild, mature tree; to accentuate age.  Rocks, architectural features, and figures are sometimes added to enhance the illusion of a miniature landscape. 

The photos above are from the Chinese pavilion.

The National Penjing and Bonsai Museum is set up with separate pavilions to showcase both styles.  Now is a great time to visit to enjoy this incredible collection to reflect on the historic moment that sparked its creation as well as the centuries old tradition that these trees represent..

 

Garden dream

Two things I appreciate most about Tuinzondernaam, the gardens of Frank Thuyls and his late partner Pierre van Kol: First, they show us that historic garden ideas are relevant to gardens today; second, they demonstrate that when we combine great design with what we love, we can create magical outdoor space.  Frank and Pierre’s gardens invite us to dream; to believe that anything is possible.

Through a dozen garden rooms, they have transformed their landscape into a series of distinct worlds; each one unique.  All within a half acre plot, their property feels ten times bigger.

On the summer day I set out to visit Frank, the weather was perfect.  The roughly 2 hour drive southeast of Amsterdam took me through Utrecht, the Dutch countryside, and finally into Liessel.

Tucked at the end of a small gravel lane in the middle of a corn field, the house would be easy to miss from the road were it not for a hand painted wood sign.  Today the house blends into the landscape and is full of windows that frame views of the garden.  Originally the site was used by the Germans for a World War II anti-aircraft battery. 

Over a wonderful cup of fresh European coffee, Frank shared the history of the garden.  He explained how Pierre first found the place and how their first attempt was to plant a woodland that never felt right. The idea for outdoor rooms came to them when they visited the garden of Dutch designer Ineke Greve.  By extending the lines of exterior and interior walls of the house, so that windows would frame a view from inside, they created the outlines of the new landscape.  One garden room led to another; each provided a sense of accomplishment that encouraged them to create more.

Expertly trimmed yew and hornbeam hedges define the spaces.  I love the one boundary that is a stone wall with a doorway and windows.  It serves both to frame the formal Taxus Garden and to create architectural interest. 

Pathways of slate, brick and woodchips connect the rooms; and focal points – like an urn, sundial, or statue - draw the eye out and serve as guides.  An oval opening in one hedge borrows the view of beautiful farmland beyond. Benches provide destinations and thoughtful details reflect their personalities.

Our tour passed through the Pink, Kitchen, and Yellow gardens.  The Burgundy Garden tucked into a corner was a real surprise.  And despite the formality, there is even space for a picturesque woodland. 

Many of the photos above are from the Rose Garden.  Frank explained that this was Pierre’s favorite.  A teak bench is backed by hornbeam and a pair of pleached sycamore.  The inscription on the bench reads, “Dear Pierre, for me you stay forever.”

Frank is generous in sharing advice from the philosophical to the practical.  Here are a few of my favorites:

"Start small":  Pick one space to work on and once you’ve got that down, you can create another.  Don’t take on too much at one time.

"Keep it simple": Stick to one color scheme per room in order to maximize the drama of moving from one room to the next. 

"Maintain one room at a time:  It is so satisfying because you always have the feeling that you finished something.  Tomorrow another one.”

"Consider the sun": When planning garden rooms with symmetrical plantings and tall hedges be sure to take the movements of the sun into account since often each side will get different light.

"Use composted manure:" When spreading manure, make sure that it is well composted and a little goes a long way.

"Make it personal and have fun": Most of all, he said that the garden should reflect what makes you happy.  Flame tipped topiary, colored glass reflecting balls, and gargoyles from antiquing trips are a few of the ways that Frank injects himself into the garden.   

I found it interesting that Frank and Pierre chose a humble name for their award-winning garden: “Tuinzondernaam” - the garden with no name.  But their garden is not humble.  It is a celebration of style, color, and personality.  At times soothing, at others exhilarating.

Just as Frank and Pierre were inspired by Ineke Greve’s work, I left Frank’s place full of ideas for my own garden.  Frank’s approach and coaching also gave me the confidence (and hope), that with hard work and patience, I too could create the garden of my dreams.

Visit Tuinzondernaam’s website to learn more about the garden and to inquire about a visit.  This is a must see on any visit to the Netherlands.  

Check out the one minute video below to get a bird's eye view of the garden.  Click here for more arts and crafts garden inspiration.

 

Frank Thuyls sharing his garden wisdom during one of many garden tours he hosts.  Source: w-rusch.de

The modern garden

Rotterdam, the second largest city in the Netherlands, is a layered place.  Not one to knock you over the head with its treasures, this city gets better the more you experience it.  It has the largest port in Europe, wonderful art museums, a massive bi-weekly farmer’s market, and an incredibly diverse mix of architectural styles. 

One of my favorite spots is off the beaten path: a small neighborhood of modernist houses from the 1930’s international school of architecture. When you stand in their midst, they envelope you and make you feel as if you had stepped back in time to the years before WWII.  There is a sense of hope in the potential of the future where design, technology and machines would solve the problems of the world.  At the same time, there is the expectation of impending doom.  In a city that was destroyed during WWII, this neighborhood miraculously survived. Even more special: the houses are well-maintained and keep their original character.

Leendert van der Vlugt, a partner in the architectural firm Brinkman & Van der Vlught that designed the Sonneveld House. Source: Unkown.

I loved seeing that this type of architecture had a correspondingly modern garden aesthetic to match.  These gardens are clean, formal, simple; they use modern materials.  At the time, the arts and crafts garden was the ideal.  But for proponents of modern landscape design, the philosophy of looking to history for inspiration was out of touch. Modernists looked forward. Accessibility and functionality were primary; these gardens weren’t just for the “Country Place” or “gilded-age” set.  In landscape design this meant leaving behind the romantic, effusive plantings that also required a gardening staff to maintain.  In its place, design moved to geometry and formality, but without the symmetry of the formal French or Italian gardens.  Entire squares filled with one specimen: tidy, easy to care for, and in harmony with the architecture of the home.

Front facade of Sonneveld House. 

One of my favorite examples is the Sonneveld House, built in the 1930’s by architects Brinkman & Van der Vlugt in the Nieuwe Bouwen style, the Dutch branch of the International School.  The house shares style cues with the work of other modernists: Swiss architect Le Corbusier, German architect Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

The garden blends seamlessly with the house as a series of bold shapes.  Geometric beds and hedges set the structure and mirror elements of the house.  Yew hedges are set parallel to walls to emphasize their linearity; a circular outdoor patio echoes the shape of a circular staircase.  Note how "the rose garden" above lines up with a straight path.  Plants such as pampas grass and yucca are chosen for their bold shapes; and most beds are planted with a single type of plant.  The overall feel is intentional, fresh, simple. 

Contrast this garden with the arts and crafts gardens at Hidcote and Sissinghurst that were created at the same time.  Just as garden design became polarized between the formal and the picturesque in the 1700’s, the 1930’s saw a split between the nostalgic arts & crafts-- and the modern. 

The Sonneveld House stands adjacent to the Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI) and is now open as a museum that showcases the interiors as they would have appeared in 1933.  Stunning and worth the visit.