D R .   S U N   Y A T - S E N
C L A S S I C A L   C H I N E S E   G A R D E N

Vancouver, BC Canada

Within the garden the concept of yin and yang is manifested in many interesting ways. The most visible is in the garden's ground tiling. The yin, or feminine energy, is represented in the curved tile while the yang, or masculine energy, is represented in the tile with the geometrical, angular design.

The purely yin tile is at one end of the garden, the purely yang tile is at the opposite end. As one travels from one end of the garden the to the other, the tile design transitions from one energy to another. It's such a subtile transition that had I not been told about it, I probably wouldn't have noticed. Chinese design is all about subtlety and balance.

Every Chinese Garden must have a mountain. It's required to appease the spirits who need a place to dwell.

And every mountain must have a cave. It represents the passage from our world to the spiritual world.

Scattered across the garden are these natual rock formations pulled from some river in China. They are all selected because they hold identifiable figures and forms. This is what I see when I look at them, from left to right, 1) jumping whale, 2) cow, 3) face looking left (George Washington?), 4) sea horses, 5) supposed to be a dragon with wings (I can't see it).