An Oral History of Seattle Japanese Garden, Story No. 1: A Lesson in Shadow Patterns
An Oral History of Seattle Japanese Garden, Story No. 1: A Lesson in Shadow Patterns

This post is the first of the Toro no Akari blog series, an oral history of the Seattle Japanese Garden as told from the perspective of those who know its every inch most intimately: the gardeners. The series reveals a little-known history of stewardship and mentoring—of alighting each other’s paths as a toro lantern would—that’s continued for over sixty years.

In this interview, Jim Thomas, former head gardener, reflects on his long-term relationship with Dick Yamasaki, who constructed the garden with designer Juki Iida in the late 1950s and upheld the garden’s vision through its maintenance for over thirty years. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

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Garden History, HistoryGuest User#oralhistory, #toronoakari, #seattlejapanesegarden
Public Meeting Report: the Japanese Garden North Wall and Pavilion Project
Public Meeting Report: the Japanese Garden North Wall and Pavilion Project

On November 16, the Arboretum Foundation and Seattle Parks and Recreation co-hosted a public meeting at the Graham Visitors Center focused on the Japanese Garden North Wall and Pavilion Project. Representatives from Berger Partnership and Hoshide Wanzer Architects presented designs plans for this Master Plan project, which reconstructs the crumbling stone wall at the north end of the pond, modifies the pathways in this area to improve accessibility, and adds a new pavilion-like structure that was originally envisioned by the Garden’s designer, Juki Iida, back in 1959, but never realized. The designers answered questions from the meeting attendees and gathered feedback on the potential uses of the structure.

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Fall, From Home, Japanese CultureGuest Userfall, books, Japanese culture