Lan Su Chinese Garden
Encyclopedia
Lan Su Chinese Garden, formerly the Portland Classical Chinese Garden and titled the Garden of Awakening Orchids, is a walled garden enclosing a full city block, roughly 40000 square feet (3,716.1 m²) in the Chinatown
area of the Old Town Chinatown
neighborhood of Portland, Oregon
, USA
. The garden is influenced by many of the famous classical gardens in Suzhou
.
continued those efforts in the 1990s and assisted in the non-profit group that operates the garden in finding a site for a garden. The garden was designed by Kuang Zhen Yan and built by 65 artisans from Suzhou on land donated by NW Natural
on a 99-year lease; groundbreaking occurred in July 1999, and construction was completed 14 months later at a cost of about $12.8 million. 500 tons of rock were brought from China and used in the garden. The garden's grand opening was on September 14, 2000. The construction of the central lake has created problems at times, such as leakage and one case of three visitors fallen into it.
In 2010, to mark the 10-year anniversary of the garden, the garden was renamed to Lan Su Chinese Garden. Su represents Suzhou and Lan represents Portland.
It includes examples of a number of structures common to Chinese garden
s, including covered walkways (lang), bridges (qiáo), and structures such as:
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
area of the Old Town Chinatown
Old Town Chinatown, Portland, Oregon
Old Town Chinatown is a neighborhood in the Northwest section of Portland, Oregon. The Willamette River forms its eastern boundary, separating it from the Lloyd District and the Kerns and Buckman neighborhoods...
neighborhood of Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The garden is influenced by many of the famous classical gardens in Suzhou
Suzhou
Suzhou , previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part...
.
History
In the early 1980s an effort was started to build a Chinese garden in Portland, and in 1988 Suzhou and Portland became sister cities. Portland mayor Vera KatzVera Katz
Vera Katz is a Democratic politician in the state of Oregon. She was the first woman to serve as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives and was the 45th mayor of Portland, Oregon's most populous city. Growing up in New York City, she moved to Portland in 1962 and was elected to the Oregon...
continued those efforts in the 1990s and assisted in the non-profit group that operates the garden in finding a site for a garden. The garden was designed by Kuang Zhen Yan and built by 65 artisans from Suzhou on land donated by NW Natural
NW Natural
NW Natural is a publicly traded utility headquartered in Portland, Oregon, United States. Primarily a natural gas distributor, the company services residential, industrial, and commercial customers in Western Oregon and Southwest Washington in the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1859, the company...
on a 99-year lease; groundbreaking occurred in July 1999, and construction was completed 14 months later at a cost of about $12.8 million. 500 tons of rock were brought from China and used in the garden. The garden's grand opening was on September 14, 2000. The construction of the central lake has created problems at times, such as leakage and one case of three visitors fallen into it.
In 2010, to mark the 10-year anniversary of the garden, the garden was renamed to Lan Su Chinese Garden. Su represents Suzhou and Lan represents Portland.
Features
Most of the plants featured in the garden are indigenous to China. However, no plants were brought from China due to import bans. Instead, many plants were found in gardens and nurseries in Oregon, having grown from plants brought over before the import ban. Some plants in the garden are as old as 100 years. There are over a hundred trees, orchids, water plants, perennials, bamboos, and unusual shrubs located throughout the garden. In total there are more than 400 species. The dominant feature is the artificial Lake Zither at the center of the garden.It includes examples of a number of structures common to Chinese garden
Chinese garden
The Chinese garden, also known as a Chinese classical garden, is a style of landscape garden which has evolved for more than three thousand years, and which is inspired by Chinese literature, Chinese painting and Chinese philosophy...
s, including covered walkways (lang), bridges (qiáo), and structures such as:
- Celestial Hall of Permeating Fragrance (a xuan, or scholar's studio for practicing the Four Arts of the Chinese ScholarFour Arts of the Chinese ScholarThe Four Arts of the Chinese Scholar, otherwise known as siyi , is a term used to describe four main accomplishments required of the Chinese scholar gentleman...
); - Flowers Bathing in Spring Rain (a shuixie, or water-side pavilion);
- Painted Boat in Misty Rain (a fáng, or boat-shaped pavilion):
- Moon Locking Pavilion (a tíng, or stopping place); and
- Tower of Cosmic Reflection (a lóu, or two-storied building).