The History of the New York Chinese Scholar's Garden
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The
Garden is the result of a far-reaching collaboration among many
partners, including the Staten Island Botanical Garden, private
foundations, the City of New York, the Landscape Architecture
Company of China, the Metropolitan Chinese American Community,
and hundreds of individual and corporate donors. Frances Paulo Huber, the Botanical Garden's president, first conceived of it in 1984. Mrs. Huber recognized the need for a unique and exceptional project on a site that would attract visitors and meet a need in the metropolitan region. The result was the New York Chinese Scholar's Garden, the only authentic classical Chinese garden built in the United States. It adds a new dimension to our understanding of life in ancient China and serves as a center for a host of multi-cultural events. After a long series of negotiations to secure funding and approvals, the outcome was a contract with the Suzhou branch of the Landscape Architecture Corporation of China. Mr. Zou Gongwu, long acknowledged as China's leading scholar in the area of classic garden design, became chief project designer. The New York Chinese Scholar's Garden is based on his original design. All the architectural components of The New York Chinese Scholar's Garden were prefabricated in Suzhou, including roof and floor tiles, columns and beams, doors and windows, bridges and paving materials. Rocks were carefully chosen from the Suzhou area. All these materials were shipped from China by cargo ship to New York in the spring of 1998. Shortly after their arrival, a team of 40 Chinese artists and artisans from Suzhou took up residence on the grounds and began construction. in six months, they had finished their work and created the only Chinese Scholar's Garden in the United States. With international acclaim, The New York Chinese Scholar's Garden opened in June 1999. |
