Chinese Gardens

China was one of the first countries to create garden art. The art of gardening can be traced back over 3,000 years to the Yin and Zhou dynasties, during which people's aesthetic conceptualization of mountains and waters promoted the emergence and development of classical gardens in China.

Over the centuries, Chinese gardens have gradually developed their unique characteristics and diverse regional styles, driven by the development of society and culture and people's pursuit of an ideal home. Chinese gardens can be divided on a regional basis into northern, southern, Lingnan, and Sichuan gardens. Northern gardens, mostly royal, are characterized by grand scale, majestic architecture, gorgeous colors, and elegant style, with typical examples including the Old Summer Palace (Yuan Ming Yuan), the Summer Palace, and the Chengde Mountain Resort. Southern gardens, usually smaller in size, emphasize flexible use of gardening techniques to showcase the beauty of the world in a small area, such as the Lingering Garden and the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou. Lingnan gardens, influenced by Western architectural culture, often adopt Roman-style arches and Baroque column heads in their layout and components. Well-known examples include the Qinghui Garden in Shunde and the Keyuan Garden in Dongguan. Sichuan gardens, simple in style, often incorporate pas- toral scenery. Some famous gardens commemorate historical celebrities, such as the Du Fu Thatched Cottage and the Wuhou Shrine in Chengdu.

中國園林

中國是世界園林藝術起源最早的國家之一。園林藝術最早可以追溯到3000多年前的殷周時期，人們山水審美觀念的確立，促進中國古典園林的產生和發展。

歷史上，中國園林伴隨著社會文化的發展及人們對理想家園的追求而逐步成熟，形成獨具特色的園林體系和異彩紛呈的地域風格。按照地域，中國園林主要分為北方園林、江南園林、嶺南園林和蜀中園林等。北方園林主要是皇家園林，規模宏大，建筑莊嚴，色彩華麗，風格雍容華貴，典型代表有圓明園、頤和園、承德避暑山莊等。江南園林一般面積不大，注重靈活運用造園手法，在小范圍內表現大千世界的美景，如蘇州留園、拙政園等。嶺南園林受西方建筑文化的影響，布局形式和局部構件常采用羅馬式的拱形門窗和巴洛克的柱頭，比較著名的有順德清暉園、東莞可園等。蜀中園林風格古樸，常將田園之景移至園內，一些名園大多用于紀念歷史名人，如成都杜甫草堂、武侯祠等。