小有亭台亦耐看网师园

小有亭台亦耐看网师园

小有亭台亦耐看，并不容易做到，从艺术角度来讲，就是要以少胜多，要含蓄，要有不尽之意，要能得体，无过无不及，恰到好处。试以苏州网师园来谈谈，它是造园家推誉的小园典范。

网师园初建于宋代，原为南宋史正志的万卷堂故址，清乾隆年间（1736—1795）重建，同治年间（1862—1874）又重修，形成了今天的规模。园占地不广，但是人处其境，会感到称心悦目，宛转多姿，可坐可留，足堪盘桓竟夕，确实有其迷人之处，能达到“淡语皆有味，浅语皆有致”的艺术境界。

中国园林往往与住宅相连，是住宅建筑的组成部分。中国传统住宅多受封建社会的宗法思想影响，布局较为严谨，而园林部分却多范山模水，以自然景色出现，可调剂生活，增进舒适的情味。网师园的园林和住宅都不算大，皆以精巧见称，主宅亦只有会客饮宴用的大厅和起居的内厅。主宅旁则以楼屋为过渡，与西部的园林形成若接若分的处理，手法巧妙。

从轿厅西首入园，可看到门上刻有“网师小筑”四字。“网师”是托于“渔隐”的意思，因此，园的中心是一个大池。进园，有曲廊接四面厅，厅名“小山丛桂轩”。轩前隔以花墙，山幽桂馥，香藏不散。轩东有便道，可直贯南北。径莫妙于曲，莫便于直，因为是“便道”，所以是用直道，供当时仆人作传达、递送之用。蹈和馆、琴室位轩西，小院回廊，迂回曲折。“欲扬先抑”，“未歌先敛”，此处造园也用此技法，故小山丛桂轩的北面用黄石山围隔，称“云岗”。随廊越陂，有亭可留，名“月到风来亭”。视野开阔，明波若镜，渔矶高下，画桥迤逦，俱呈一池之中，其间高下虚实，云水变幻，骋怀游目，咫尺千里。“涓涓流水细浸阶，凿个池儿，招个月儿来，画栋频摇动，芙蕖尽倒开。”亭名“月到风来”正写此妙镜。云岗以西，小阁临流，名“濯缨”，与看松读画轩隔水相呼。轩是园的主厅，其前古木若虬，老根盘结于苔石间，仿佛一幅画面。轩旁有廊一曲，与竹外一枝轩接连，东廊名“射鸭”，是一半亭，与池西之月到风来亭相映，凭栏得静观之趣。俯视池水，弥漫无尽，聚而支分，去来无踪，盖得力于溪口、湾头、石矶的巧妙安排，以假象逗人。桥与步石环池而筑，其用意在不分割水面，看去增加支流深远之意。至于驳岸有级，出水流矶，增人浮水之感。而亭、台、廊、榭无不面水，使全园处处有水可依。园不在大，泉不在广。唐杜甫诗所谓“名园依绿水”，正好为此园写照。池周山石，看去平易近人，蕴藉多姿，它的蓝本出自虎丘白莲池。

网师园西部殿春簃本来是栽植芍药花的，因为一春花事，芍药开在最后，所以名为“殿春”。小轩三间，复带书房，竹、石、梅、蕉隐于窗后，每当微阳淡淡地照着时，宛如一幅浅色的图画。苏州的园林，此园的构思最佳。因为园小，建筑物处处凌虚，空间扩大，“透”字的妙用，随处得之。轩前面东为假山，与其西曲廊相对。西南的角上有一小水池，名为“涵碧”，清澈醒人，与中部大池有脉可通，存“水贵有源”之意。泉上筑亭，名“冷泉”，南面略置峰石，为殿春簃的对景。余地用卵石平整铺地。它与中部水池同一原则，都是以大片面积，形成水陆的对比。前者以石点水，后者以水点石。在总体上，利用建筑与山石的对比，相互更换，使人看去觉得变化多端。

万顷之园难在紧凑，数亩之园难在宽绰。紧凑则不觉其大，游无倦意，宽绰则不觉局促，览之有物，故以静、动观园，有缩地扩基之妙，而奴役风月，左右游人，极尽构思之巧。网师园无旱船1、大桥，建筑物尺度略小，数量适可而止，停停当当，像个小园格局，这在造园学上称为“得体”。

至于树木栽植，小园宜多落叶，以疏植之，取其空透，此为以疏救塞，因为园小往往务多的缘故。小园布景有中空而边实，有中实而边空，前者如网师园，后者环秀山庄略似之。总之，在有限面积要有较大空间，这些空间要有变化，所以利用建筑、花墙、山石等分隔，以形成多种层次，而曲水弯环，又在布局上多不尽之意。造园之妙，盖在于此。

注释：

1.旱船是中国园林常见的一种建筑形式，为水边建造的船形建筑物，以供临水游憩、眺望。

A Small Garden with Pavilions Is of Lasting Interest —Wangshi Garden(https://www.daowen.com)

It is not easy for a small garden with pavilions to be of lasting interest unless it possesses memorable features such as those found in Wangshi Garden in Suzhou.This garden is implicit in expression and infinite in meaning, a good illustration of the aesthetic appeal that less is more.Being highly commended by experts, this garden is classically representative of small gardens.

First constructed in the Song Dynasty, Wangshi Garden was originally the site for Wanjuan Hall of Mr.Shi Zhengzhi, a high-ranking official in the Southern Song Dynasty.It expanded to its present size after being rebuilt during the Qianlong reign (1736-1795) and renovated again during the Tongzhi reign (1862-1874).Despite its miniature size, the garden’s compact layout and changeable scenes are so attractive to a visitor that he feels absorbed by its vibrant beauty.Its alluring charm can always be appropriately reflected no matter whether it is described with plain language or stated in simple words.

Chinese gardens, which are usually integrated with a dwelling area, form a part of official residences.Influenced by the patriarchal ideology of the feudal society, traditional Chinese residences follow rigid design patterns, whereas the gardens present natural landscapes fashioned after famous mountains and rivers, which bring flavor and add color to life.The gardens and dwelling areas in Wangshi Garden are both well known for their exquisiteness albeit their small size.The main residence includes only a living room for meeting visitors and holding banquets, and a couple of sleeping rooms.Next to the main residence stands a storied house which builds a connection with the gardens in the west.

Upon entering Wangshi Garden from the west of Sedan Hall, one may see over the gate an inscription of four Chinese characters: Wang Shi Xiao Zhu with Wang Shi meaning fishermen’s hermitage.This explains the existence of a large pond in the center of the garden.Inside the garden lie zigzag covered walkways leading to a foursided open hall called Xiaoshanconggui Gallery.The front of the hall is fenced off by a tracery wall behind which osmanthus sends off a densely sweet scent in the small mountains.

To the east of the hall, a pathway extends from south to north right through the garden.Although a winding pathway is more interesting, a straight one is more convenient for it provided a speedy way for servants to deliver messages.To the west of the pavilion stand Daohe Pavilion and Qinshi Pavilion, where zigzag covered walkways wind through them.The gardening technique of suppression prior to emancipation is featured here.North of Xiaoshanconggui Gallery is walled with rockeries made of the Yellow Stones, thus called Yungang.When going along the covered walkways and crossing over the bumpiness, one may stop and relax in a pavilion named Yuedaofenglai, and enjoy a broad view of the pond with its mirrorlike waves, steep fishing rocks, and meandering colorful bridges.Cloud images change with the movement of the water, resulting in an alternation of illusion and reality near and afar.The name of the pavilion is to depict the enchanting scenery.“With trickling water encroaching upon stairs, I dig a pool to invite the moon; meticulously painted buildings waving in water, lotus flowers in full blossom are flickeringin the wind.”West of Yungang is Zhuoying, a pavilion which stands near the water and which loosely corresponds to Kansongduhua Gallery.In front of this gallery, which serves as the main studio in the garden, old dragon-like cypress trees, coiling and tangling their roots amidst mossy rocks, look like reallife paintings.Next to the gallery is a zigzag covered walkway, that leads to Zhuwaiyizhi Gallery.The eastern part of the covered walkway known as Sheya, is a half pavilion corresponding to Yuedaofenglai Pavilion in the western part of the pond.One may get an excellent view of this pavilion by leaning upon balustrades in the eastern covered walkway.The pavilion overlooks a pond which gives the illusion of a vast infiniteness.This fascinating effect is attributed to the ingenious arrangement of stream ends, docks and rocks, whose artificial appearances look whimsical.Bridges and footpaths are built around the pond with the intent not to break the view of the water surface, but to intensify the vastness of the water.Stairs are laid out along the banks and water flows from rocks, generating an illusion of people floating on water.Pavilions, walkways and towers are all placed near the water, creating an effect that there is always water for each scenic spot to lean on in the garden.A garden distinguishes itself not because it is big; in the same vein, a spring is famous not because it spreads afar.This garden is well illustrated by a line from a poem by poet Du Fu in Tang Dynasty: “clear water brings life to a garden”.Inspired by Bailian Pool at Tiger Hill, the elegant simplicity of the plain rocks around the pond creates a profound atmosphere.

In the western part of the garden is Dianchun Pavilion, originally a greenhouse for planting Chinese herbaceous peonies.The pavilion is named Dianchun, meaning late spring, for Chinese herbaceous peonies don’t come into full bloom until late spring in contrast to other flowers that are in full blossom in spring.The pavilion consists of three partitions with a study where bamboos, rocks, plum trees and plantains are hidden behind windows, giving rise to an impression of paintings bathed in pale sunshine.The design of this garden surpasses that of all other gardens in Suzhou.Because the garden is small, buildings are ereted overhead to make the space seem much larger than it is.This intriguing application of “seeingthrough”is revealed in details everwhere.For example, east of the pavilion is a rockery opposite zigzag covered walkways in the west.In the southeast lies the small, clear Hanbi Pool, which is connected to the large pond in the center of the garden, implying the source of the spring.A pavilion called Lengquan is above the spring.On its southern side are large steep rocks sparsely placed to form paired scenes with Dianchun Pavilion.The ground is covered with pebbles.The layout of this part follows the same garden design principle for the design of the pond in the center of the garden that is, to form a sharp contrast between water and land.The former design decorates water with rocks, while the latter one decorates rocks with water.On the whole, variable contrasts between buildings and rocks are used to present changing scenes to visitors.

It is difficult to make a large garden of a million mu compact, while it is equally hard to render a small garden of several mu as spacious.In a large but compact garden one does not feel tired when touring in it; in a small but spacious garden one feels as if there remains a lot to be seen.So when viewed in an in-position manner, i.e.at a standstill or in an in-motion manner, i.e.when wandering along, a garden may seem to be shrunken or enlarged.With this ingenious arrangement, the moon and wind are seemingly controlled and visitors are enchanted.Without land boats1 and big bridges in Wangshi Garden, buildings are constructed relatively small in size and in number, in a way that a small garden is supposed to be.This is exactly what we mean by “appropiate”in garden design.

As for the selection of plants, deciduous trees should be planted sparsely in a smallgarden to create a sense of openness.The intent is to spare the garden from looking being cramped by keeping objects sparse in number, since there are often too many objects in a small garden.The scenery in a small garden should be arranged in a pattern.That is sparse in the middle but dense on the edges, or being dense in the middle but sparse on the edges.Wangshi Garden is a fine example of the former pattern, and Huanxiu Mountain Resort illustrates the latter pattern.In general, to make a small area look spacious, one must have variety in the space; therefore, buildings, tracery walls and rocks should be well juxtaposed to create multi-dimensions.In addition, the layout of a garden, the meandering water and the curving banks should be used to impart a sense of inf inity.The mystery of garden design probably lies in this.

Notes:

1.A land boat is a boat-like building built by waterside for visitors to relax and admire the scenery in the distance.It is a structure commonly used in Chinese garden design.