Research On The Landscape Of Traditional Academy In The Hunan Xiangjiang Basins

As an important cultural and educational place in ancient China, the academy is the base for spreading and innovating Confucian culture around the country, and it contains precious historical and cultural information. The environment landscape of academy meets the need of its specific daily function, as well as demonstrates the ancient scholars’ environment construction philosophy and aesthetic requirement. The ancient academy architecture in Hunan province is distributed densely and has greater cultural influence. Right now, the research on the Hunan academy environment landscape is mainly focused on the architecture space area of Yuelu Academy, but the systematical, overall and fundamental research on the environment landscape of the whole traditional academies in Hunan province is almost blank. After a large amount of investigation study and literature searching on the existing and representative academies in the Xiangjiang River basin, this paper selected 14 examples as the research targets, with an emphasis on the research of the academy’s environment site selection, space layout and landscape factors through applying the method of literature searching, field investigation and statistic analysis based on garden art principle and landscape space theory. This paper is aimed to deduce the general rule of Hunan academy environment landscape construction and its specific characteristic in contrast with other traditional landscape through the fundamental research on academy environment landscape, and then propose some suggestion on taking protection on this historical and cultural landscape.The main conclusions of this paper are follows:(1) The site selection type of traditional academy can be classified into mountains & rivers type, city & country type. The two types all indicate that environment is the most important factor in the site selection process.(2) The construction history of traditional academy can be traced back to Tang dynasty. In the past dynasties, the academy had built much functional space for entry, lecturing, lodging, worshiping, book-collecting, relaxing and exercising. The space for lecturing, book-collecting are the necessary and main functional space, but the space for entry and relaxing represents the academy’s level, creates its mood and enriches its environment philosophy. The space layout should take universe, rites & music integration into consideration. The main buildings take on the central axis hierarchy style, and the surrounding buildings constitute all kinds of courtyards in company with the main buildings. The courtyards integrate the academy into an ordered, interesting and organic whole in the help of the landscape factors such as gateway, scenic window, ambulatory, plant and the interaction between them.(3) The traditional academy adopts native plants to construct plant space. The plants of Cinnamomum camphora, Magnolia grandiflora, Osmanthus fragrans, Pittosporum tobira, Camellia japonica, Podocarpus macrophyllus, Sabina chinensis are adopted frequently. The plants of Punica granatum, Michelia figo (Lour.) Spreng, Michelia alba DC, Nerium indicum Mill, Bauhinia blakeana Dunn is commonly seen in the courtyard. Courtyard planting pattern and plant community planting pattern work together can help to create the exquisite courtyard space, obscure the academy boundary in the manner of natural plant community, and integrate building into the surrounding mountain and forest. This method reflects the philosophy of Harmony between Man and Nature, and brings the natural and cultural flavor of talented persons growing up like the trees in verdant and comfortable environment for the academy.(4) The architecture detail of gate, window and wall with concise shape can intensify the connection of different area, and bring gradation for the landscape. The main types of small garden ornaments in the academy are path, road paving, bridge railings, parapet, and so on. They adopt the native material such as granite, blue brick and gravel. This can not only create different layers of space, but also appear a simple, unadorned and natural space style.(5) The mountain & rock landscape types appeared in traditional academy environment contained natural mountain forest, cave, dock, island, and other special terrain landscape. Water landscape types contained spring waterfall, mountain stream, pond, pan pool. The landscape metioned above performs the typical combination characteristic of nature and culture. The mountain, rock and landscape all appear a pure and fresh style. In the help of this style, the academy can express the educational meaning of Confucianism.(6) The cultural landscape of horizontal inscribed board is plain and elegant, and its color tone is slate grey, pink green, dark brown and black & white. The horizontal inscribed board in the academy can steer eyesight and stress space hierarchy, furthermore, it contains intriguing philosophy, profound and lasting moral among its cite from the classics or ancient works. The specific cultural landscape, the cultural activity of naming, worshiping, and the whole landscape space express the appeal of making landscape a part of teaching, the value system of promoting oneself to save the world, and the reputation of Hunan academies.(7) After discussion, this paper considers that the traditional academy landscape is the cultural aesthetic art of environment rooted in Hunan district, and the landscape highlights the values of using practical knowledge to manage state affairs and the humanism cultivation system of talented persons can grow up like the trees. The protection of Hunan academies can start with Ecological Integrity, Eco-culture. It can conclude that there are three inspirations of practicability, local-consideration and humanism for modern landscape design brought by Hunan academies.