The
Art of Setting Stones & Other Writings
from the Japanese Garden
by Marc
Peter Keane
Stone Bridge Press, Berkeley, California,
2005
160 pp. illus. 60 b/w. Paper, $16.95
ISBN: 1-880656-70-1.
Reviewed by Rob Harle (Australia)
harle@dodo.com.au
This is a very soothing book! When
everything in the world seems wrong or
youre overwhelmed by the tensions
of everyday modern living, reading a few
pages of The Art of Setting Stones
may just be the best medicine you
could take.
The sense of peace one feels in a well
cared for garden, especially a garden
that embraces the Oriental aesthetic style,
is conveyed throughout this book. Small
water features and naturally weathered
stones are extremely important parts of
Japanese gardens. Hence, the title refers
to the way these features are carefully
placed in such gardens. The naturalness
and apparent simplicity of these gardens
belies the complex philosophy behind their
design. Like the highly structured process
involved with the traditional Japanese
Tea Ceremony, these gardens are precisely
designed and constructed, however, when
done correctly the artifice disappears,
and the viewer experiences a wonderful
empathy with nature.
The book has eight chapters with the following
titles: Currents, Boundaries, Closing
The Circle, Trees, Layers, Balance, The
Art of Setting Stones and Wintergreen.
There are quite a number of delightful
illustrations, ". . . done on black clayboard
by the author, whittling away the cold
evenings at his hori-kotatsu, during the
late Autumn and Winter of 2000". Keane
lived in Kyoto for many years, and the
gardens he describes are all from this
area of Japan. The book describes many
traditional Japanese customs, such as
sword making, and Keane flows in and out
of the garden descriptions with snippets
of philosophy and words of wisdom, ranging
from economics to ecology to the nature
of existence.
Whilst The Art of Setting Stones
is not by any means a how-to instruction
manual, the attentive reader will understand
what is required in creating a natural
garden place of peace and tranquillity
for themselves. Marc Peter Keane is an
astute observer of minute detail and this
is meticulously reported on almost every
page. As an example, "Waves of light ripple
off the water, shimmer up the stones,
the trunks and branches of the trees,
rising in endless waves, as if returning
to the sun" (p. 33). Consequently, it
is not really the sort of book one reads
from cover to cover in one sitting; it
has the potential to become a little boring
if consumed in this way. As I mentioned
earlier, reading a few pages at a time
or perhaps a chapter will uplift even
the most jaded psyche.
I feel considerable sympathy for those
who live in high-rise buildings or congested
cities with no regular access to the healing,
therapeutic qualities of well-designed
gardens. Incidentally, there is a considerable
body of emerging research supporting the
therapeutic affect of gardens and wild
places, such as rainforests. Even in the
smallest apartment, a miniature Japanese
garden, perhaps 60cm. x 60cm., may be
created and incorporate the philosophy
outlined in this book. Such a small garden
has the possibility of bringing about
the same sense of tranquillity and connection
with the natural world as some of the
much larger gardens created outdoors.
This book may just inspire you enough
to create your own place of peace.