Exploring Japanese Gardens: Lecture Series

Introduction to the Lecture Series

Part I: Art and Architecture in Japanese Gardens

Jeffrey Albert, Project Manager and Designer at the architectural firm, Foit-Albert and Associates, will explore the symbolism and meaning behind the architectural design of Japanese gardens in his lecture, The Art and Architecture of the Japanese Garden. Comparing the philosophy of Japanese garden design to other art forms like ukiyo-e (woodblock printing) and cha-no-yu (tea ceremony), Albert will give insight into the sense of well-being one hopes to achieves when entering the space created in a Japanese Garden.

Part II: Elements of Japanese Gardens

The second lecture, Elements of Japanese Gardens, featured a video from Kanazawa exploring the city's Japanese Gardens (including the exquisite Kenroku-en Garden in Kanazawa), a introduction to the elements of Japanese gardens with Dr. Takako Michii and a question and answer period with the three gardener delegates from Kanazawa.

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Part III: In Japan, An Observer's Notebook

Join us for the last lecture in our three-part series on the aesthetics of Japanese garden design.

In our first lecture, Jeffrey Albert, Project Manager and Designer at the architectural firm, Foit-Albert and Associates, spoke about the symbolism and meaning behind the architectural design of Japanese gardens in his lecture, The Art and Architecture of the Japanese Garden. Now, after a summer 2008 trip to Japan, Mr. Albert will talk about the Japanese cultural aesthetic as it relates to the art of placemaking and historical interpretation in his upcoming lecture, In Japan, An Observer's Notebook. This talk will focus on a site by site visit investigating the relevance of the Japanese experience to contemporary and historic architecture in both gardens and architectural masterpieces.