Shigemori House
KyotoDrive by the urge to make the invisible, mysterious forces of nature tangible, man saw a particular substance stand out in the gloom of primeval nature – a solid, immovable rock. – Kenzo Tange, architect (1913-2005)
Mirei Shigemory (1896-1975) was a poet of rocks. A scholar trained in ikebana, painting, and tea ceremony, he became interested in garden design when he compiled the first ever survey of Japanese gardens, which took up twenty-seven volumes. Perhaps this breadth of understanding of Japanese and Western arts helped him to redefine Japanese gardens. He created over 180 gardens in Japan between 1924 and 1975, including the much-celebrated gardens at Tofuku-ji, Zuiho-in, Sumiyoshi Shrine and Fukuchi-in. however, Shigemori is also one of the most controversial garden designers in recent history. His compositions are bold and deliberate, each different than the others. While most people credit him with modernizing the Japanese garden, others criticize his venturing too far away from the spirit of what a traditional garden is. Whereas traditional gardens are content to mirror nature, Shigemori chose to combine concepts and materials from nature with contemporary materials, shapes, colors and techniques for innovative new compositions. According to him, a garden should have timeless modernity. He was enthusiastic in redefining traditional gardens and thought that they should also be used as performance and exhibition spaces. Shortly after the completion of his kare-sansui garden at the Kishiwada castle, an exhibition of avant-garde flower art was held there. He also produced a traditional dance performance for the event, in which the theme was the straight line and curved line. His 1969 design for a tea house, known as Tenrai-an, featured a design of stepping stones in a painted cement base, which was more like a sculpture to walk on rather than a garden.
In the design of the garden of his own house featured here, Mirei Shigemori seems to have enjoyed pushing the limits even further. The Shigemori house and garden were originally the property of the nearby Yoshida Shrine, and can be traced back to the mid-Edo period. Shigemori acquired this property in 1943, and gradually redesigned the garden and the house, adding two tea huts called Muji-an and Kokoku-an in 1953 and 1969 respectively. The main garden surrounds the house on two sides, and there are two small tsubo niwa gardens near the tea huts. The living room of the house is designed with an engawa porch on two sides facing the garden. This room can be completely opened up to the garden by sliding the partitions aside.
In keeping with the principles of Japanese garden design, the kare-sansui or dry landscape garden at Shigemori house has a distinct foreground, mid-ground, and background. The foreground is made up of stepping stones, moss forms and undulating expanses of racked pebbles in a dramatic wave-like pattern. The colors of the dark stones (bluish stones from the Awa region in Shikoku) against white sand and the green moss are typical Japanese garden materials, but used here in an innovative modern way. However, the mid-ground provides the biggest surprise, with very large stones arranged in a radically unconventional fashion. Traditional Japanese garden books warn against setting many large rocks in a vertical position close to each other. However, this rule has been trounced over and over again in this garden with great success.
Many of the rocks in the garden also tell a story. The four-rock formation in the center of the garden represents four islands of the Buddhist heaven or the mythical Sennin, the monks with superpowers from Taoist belief. Nearby, a tall rock represents a crane, while the low rounded rock next to it represents a turtle, both Japanese symbols of longevity. A large flat “worship rock” in the center was meant for standing of while facing the Yoshida Shrine to pray. Another rock is shaped like a boat, a frequent symbol in traditional Japanese gardens that represents the means of transporting one’s mind from the mundane to the sublime, or the journey to the world of Buddha. The background of all these dramatic rocks is made up of still larger rocks and trees near the outer wall of the garden. Some scholars believe that a red pine tree that existed in the middle of this garden when Shigemori acquired it was used by him as a symbol of Mount Horai, the center of the Buddhist universe. However, since this tree does not exist any more, the tall rock there may now be interpreted as Mount Horai, and the low rocks around it thought of as Hojo, the heavenly islands. In either case, the present garden may not be fully representative of Shigemori’s intentions.
Taking care of a garden such as this is a very expensive and time-consuming process. However, Mirei Shigemori’s house and garden are at the present fortunately in the hands of Mitsuaki Shigemori, his grandson, who has taken it upon himself to preserve them and also make them accessible as well as corporate support.
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