Crafting a Garden: Inside the Creation of Liu Fang Yuan

The Huntington’s Chinese Garden—known as Liu Fang Yuan, the Garden of Flowing Fragrance—is more than it seems. With its tiled roofs, wooden columns, and inscribed placards, it appears to be a replica of the historical gardens in Suzhou, China, that inspired its design. But underneath those seemingly traditional elements are complex layers of materials and ideas unique to the garden’s setting in contemporary California. “Crafting a Garden: Inside the Creation of Liu Fang Yuan” sheds light on the intricacies of the Chinese Garden while heightening appreciation of all that it contains.

On display are models, photographs, tools, and videos that tell the story of the design and construction of the garden. The exhibition is organized around five fundamental crafts involved in creating Liu Fang Yuan: Building, Paving, Mountain Making, Planting, and Writing.