In 1913,a so-called Moon Bridge was built in the Japanese garden of the Huntington Library in San Marino,California,USA as a fruit of the Japonism in the Western world at that time.The master carpenter was Toichiro Ka...In 1913,a so-called Moon Bridge was built in the Japanese garden of the Huntington Library in San Marino,California,USA as a fruit of the Japonism in the Western world at that time.The master carpenter was Toichiro Kawai,a Japanese immigrant from Yokohama who was originally a ship carpenter.The bridge is made of wood and shaped in the exaggerated arch form,which classifies the bridge as a"drum bridge"(Taiko-bashi)in Japanese culture.However,the unique structural form of this bridge,the"woven arch",is rare in building history.This paper aims to explore why and how such a bridge appeared in such a place and time.For this purpose,we go from the historical background to its construction history,from the concept of the designer to the detailed design methods.Data come partly from the author’s first-hand investigation and the limited local archive.The most interesting discoveries were made during the detailed on-site investigation,including the fact that the bridge is designed to express the metaphor of"perfection"(full moon)through its geometrical features,and the design is based according to traditional Japanese methods.展开更多
文摘In 1913,a so-called Moon Bridge was built in the Japanese garden of the Huntington Library in San Marino,California,USA as a fruit of the Japonism in the Western world at that time.The master carpenter was Toichiro Kawai,a Japanese immigrant from Yokohama who was originally a ship carpenter.The bridge is made of wood and shaped in the exaggerated arch form,which classifies the bridge as a"drum bridge"(Taiko-bashi)in Japanese culture.However,the unique structural form of this bridge,the"woven arch",is rare in building history.This paper aims to explore why and how such a bridge appeared in such a place and time.For this purpose,we go from the historical background to its construction history,from the concept of the designer to the detailed design methods.Data come partly from the author’s first-hand investigation and the limited local archive.The most interesting discoveries were made during the detailed on-site investigation,including the fact that the bridge is designed to express the metaphor of"perfection"(full moon)through its geometrical features,and the design is based according to traditional Japanese methods.
