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The art of placing stones...
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Posted by MrNorth4 Sweden ZOne 1 (My Page) on Wed, Jul 13, 05 at 16:21
| Well, just as a really small project, I wanted to try and place some stones, in a balanced, pleaseing way according to the "rules" in placing stone groupings. So I made a small attempt on my front yard.
I had a lonely extremly cheap plastic lantern (which WILL be substituted for a real one!!!!!). I decided to try and add some stones to make it look better! Please look at these three pics and tell me if I got it right. Note that this is my first attempt on a "real" stone grouping... Although the stones are somewhat small, the scale is not important.
front view!
left view
top view
I hope the angles are enough to get an understanding of the site and the location of stones and "lantern"
I hope you dont get the impression that the fern is a fourth item... it should be considered a part of the lantern. To make the base of it look somewhat stronger.
Henrik - trying to learn
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: The art of placing stones...
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Hi,
Here's what I think as I look at the arrangement.
1. The stones look "top-heavy". How much of the mass is below ground? It seems to me that the one on the right would look better if it seemed to be creeping out of the soil, the one on left, buried about three-four more inches.
I would be happier if there were three stones instead of two - odd numbers are a thing with me.
2. The top view is the only triangle that works. It is not an equilateral triangle. I think that's better.
3. I would probably move the stones closer together in the area (maybe even next to each other), adding a third and create a movement from one side to the other with the tension of dissimilar borders. The stones you have placed, for me anyway, are to similar in size (hence the burying) they tend to "frame" the area, rather than create interest in themselves.
Hope this helps. My wife claims that I love to bury rocks. She sees little point in it. ;-) Dave |
RE: The art of placing stones...
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| Hi! excellent comments! I have read tons of books and articles on the subject, but it is not until you start getting your hands dirty that you know if you understand it. As I understand from the book "adding a japanese touch to your garden" it is ok to use an object in place of a rock to create s shinzon stone grouping... like a latern, a shrub etc. Or I misunderstood perhaps? 1) The stones are not buried that much... I agree, they should be buried further! 2)I agree here too, I will try to create an odd triangle on the other views too! The first pic should work if I bury the rock to the right further down, thereby increasing the distance between it and the lantern. 3) Yes, the grouping should be set a bit closer! But if I add a third rock ( a tall one) then I have four items, and that is an even number... I want to replace the plastic lantern with a misaki-gata... would that fit in the picture? even with three stones? Or should the lantern be used instead of stones to create the triangle? /Henrik - with so many questions |
RE: The art of placing stones...
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| Dave, keep burying your rocks! Henrik, the questions don't stop, they just get harder. I always look forward to finding out what you have done with the discussions of your garden in this forum, and to seeing your photos of the progress! I don't think you should call attention to this light by placing stones near it. Would it be better to nestle it into the foliage somewhere whereit would blend in during the day, and at night the light would play as the foliage moved in the breeze? Then you could use your stones to create an alternate visual destination, away from this fixture. |
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