Wow, finally I got your elusive face  straight on !!
Dr. Bang, you look awesome, man !! A tough guy in Brooklyn.
I guess the Cosmos Night was yesterday.
I hope everything went on well, except the bad weather (?).

A-i-go, Rover-nim.

I am not a Tough Guy,
I am a Gentle Thief,
Aiming to build Korean Garden in near future,
but hiding real purpose on the surface for the time being
to avoid other ethnic groups' opposition.

It's because Botanical Garden is For All, Not Just Only for Koreans.
We have Master Plan(blue print) and Lot for it but we need Geld.

We adopted Circle Garden you see on the picture since 2002 to take
our foot on the Garden.
We pay $5,000 for the maintenance of it every year.

NY City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Korean Consul General
were supposed to be there for Cosmos Night but unfortunately
they could not make it due to Bad Weather yesterday.

Can you believe we had Tornado (Tornado in New York? you might say)
right at the time  when Cosmos Night was supposed to start? At 6 PM.

Everything was blown away, but the Show had to go on
after we cleaned the mess. 

Now I can recognize Dr. Bang, if I meet you somewhere!!

About    "Korean Gardens"  Abroad.

The one in Los Angeles has hard time to get started. Too grandiose in financial scale?
I hope you will make the first modest one in NY.
What kind of style are you thinking about?
Open type for people to go and rest ( 만대루 병산서원 하회, 소쇄원 광풍정,...)

  or just like a doll to be seen only like the one in 경복궁 향원정.

I prefer the former. It will give a memory to keep if you rested there for 15 minutes.
That used to be the function of 루 ? (광한루 촉석루, 경회루, 서원입구의 누각들.....).
Do you have a model or plan of a building already?
I am so anxious to see your design one day!

I bought a cheap bank owned deserted property on 6 acres with 1 acre pond/stream for
my physical and brain exercises  (?)  in my mind. Thieves cleaned the house, bee hives
in the bed room and woodpeckers made several hundred holes on the wall and 5 bucketful
of acorns brought by wood peckers, beevers completely blocked the waterway, it was a
natural zoo! Now I can understand why DMZ became a rare habitat for animals after
50 years of no "man's  interference."

My first work is making arched culvert as the road is flooded due to beevers.
I got the idea of an arch from the Munkyung Ze_Il Kuan Moon..
I am good now making an arch with concrete  blocks, not an easy job and
no one does it  in fact.
I used hispanic helping hands.

 

From Wikipedia:

Korean gardens abroad
A traditional Korean garden is currently under construction in Nantes, France. "Suncheon Garden", a 5000 square metre site, is enclosed within Blottereau Park, and celebrates the 120th anniversary of diplomatic ties between South Korea and
France.
There are traditional Korean gardens in the Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico City;
Gençlik Park in Ankara, Turkey; in Cairo, Egypt;
le Jardin d'Acclimatation de Paris;

Erholungspark Marzahn in Berlin; Grüneburgpark in Frankfurt;

돌맹이 싸이즈가 너무나 비슷해 상당히 저한테는 부자연 스러운것 같은데..

VanDusen Botanical Garden in Vancouver(* no one in Vancouver knows about it) ; and
at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden.(* Not yet built)

 

Dr. Bang,
The Circle Garden and the man look terrific.
I'm very impressed and proud of your effort and
what you've accomplished so far.
I wish you and your effort and dream all the bests.

방선생!

방선생은 언행일치를 하는 많지않은 사람중의 한분이라고 생각됩니다.
좋은뜻을 잘살리셔서 계속 성공 하기바랍니다.
저도 다음번에 퀸스방문시에 QBG를 꼭한번 방문할까합니다.   규정

Sun-bae-nim-deul,
I am not an expert regarding Korean Garden.
But I know what it might symbolize when we have it at heart of Queens
where almost 60% of Korean-Americans live in Tri-state area.

"Can you explain what's the difference among Korean, Japanese and
Chinese Garden?" . I get questions from foreigners time to time.
And I read to answer and explain.

I am in the process of learning through involvement of QBG but my real
role is just to galvanize our community to get involved with our community.

We have a famous Architect, SNU Engineering College Graduate, Award-winning,
we have gardeners, and so on. We are ready to launch our project by them. We're
only lack of fund.

Min sun-bae-nim, I know LA plan which they say they need $25 million,
which is almost impossible only by Korean community, even with Korean
Govement assistance. That's the reason I try to convince NY City officials
to get their budget allocated or lure  big donator like Michael Bloomberg,
City Mayor who donated $20 million for QBG renovation.(With Carnegie
Foundation, $47 million in total)

Grandiose plan sounds Good but we have to think about Feasibility first,
whether it's possible or not in reality.

We'll see how the futute will guide us.
I'll just have a fun getting involved with this project.
 
"No-ni Yeum-bul Ha-deud..."

방선생님,

아주 좋은 일를 하시고 있으시군요.
다음에 그곳에가면 Queens Botanical Garden을
들려 보겠습니다.

Dr. Bang,

I have a few books on oriental gardens and have seen some of them as  we all did during traveling.

Japanese garden is very appealing to westerners. But Koreans are allergic to anything starting with J.
Some of the old style is very appealing to me too, the simple style which Zen monks liked.
Have you been to RyoAnZi (龍安寺) back garden in Kyoto?



Definitely influenced by those Zen Buddhist Monk's ideals.
Here, they recreated islands in the middle of the sea and they draw waves paterns with a scraper on the sand around those rocks.
It is such a stark contrast to European style with flowers, scultures, .. overly decorated to my taste. 
In many Japanese style gardens, I see this miniaturization of the world in one way or another.

This difference may be making Japanese garden style so appealing to western eyes.

I found a simple introduction to this subject.

일본정원 약사:

구라파에 인상파 운동이 시작할때 일본의 풍속화가 그렇게 인기가 좋아
그시대 고호, 모네 등등 많은 사람이 심취하고
지금 한국 연속극같이 서구사람들의 마음을 잡엇든 모양..
그래서 정원하면 지금도 미국서 "일본정원" 맛을 가미하는가 봅니다.

중국사람 정원은 기암괴석을 갓다놓고 송나라 건축풍의 정자에 앉어 
산수화속에 무쳐서 기분 내는게 그들의 이상이엿는지도?

여기 도승 石濤가 그린 그림에서 그들의 이상적인 세계를 재현하려는것 같이 
정원도 비슷한 구실을 하고있는지 생각합니다.

바위아래 정자 속에 앉어있는 선비 모습.

여기 간단한 약사가있군요

중국정원 예

http://www.ahngb.com/china/soju_01.html

한국사람들도 연못 옆에 혹은 바다가, 개울 근처에 정자지어 놓고
기분전환을 하는것이 정원의 주목적이 아니가합니다.

일본사람같이 그렇게 완전 설계도대로 변조하기보다
그대로 있는거 가지고
적당히..해보는 식.

겸제 정선이 남긴 해금강 총성정에 정자 모습.

 

 

 

I would appreciate if you call me when you visit NY,
Chomee-nim & Hwang sun-bae-nim. I am willing to
guide you to QBG and have dinner at Korean restaurant
in Flushing over Kimchi Jji-gye or something.

Min sun-bae-nim, I remember in the era of Gogh(1853-1890)
and Gauguin(1848-1903), Japanese arts already influenced
European painters which you might know and explain better.
(I hope my memory from reading their biographies is correct)

In a sense and for sure, Japan is the only Advanced Country in Asia.
I really hope we get along together well and learn from each other,
instead of bickering each other for every issue.

I had some hope when I saw so many Japanese tourists in Korea,
here and there. 

PS; I noticed you already explained while I was writing my comment
in slow fashion, Min sun-bae-nim. Thank you.

Dr. Bang
I lived in Queens for a year doing my third Yr residency at Elmhurst General Hospital.
All I remember are  the subway noise, cockroaches, .. But, I did not know there was a city garden.

About, garden design, an architect or garden designer will help your idea or taste materialize. I realized that a Korean architect student takes only one year course of traditional architure. Korea garden tradition? I do not think they study it at all. 

My daughter majored  in environmental design: designing a city park,  river management, mostly practical design in order to
meet the minimum environmental or city regulation. Only those who plan will guide the direction of you Korean Garden.
There was practically no books on Korean Garden before. But now there are a few.
Once every few month, I check Korean book site to find new book. 
Do you check Korean book? 

Buying Korean books is now easy. They bring from Korean books from seoul with minimal delay.
Aladinus which is connected with US branch store in LA.

http://www.aladin.co.kr/home/wbookmain.aspx

최근에 구한책:

http://www.aladin.co.kr/shop/book/wletslook.aspx?ISBN=8972975842#letslook

 

Very good information you gave me. Min sun-bae-nim.
I'll call you to say hello and I think there are many other
things we can talk about.

I have a habit to drop by Korean book shops in NY area,
at least once a week, almost. And I cannot get out there
without buying a book or two, not because I am a bookworm,
but because buying books make me Feel Good for some reason.

These days I notice the price of books are skyrocketing. It's hard
to find a book, especially new editions, which is less than $20.

It's nice morning to have a chit-chat over our site.
Again, I'll call you today, Sunday, Sep.19th.
Thanks.

PS; In the meantime, please, click Booklyn Botanical Garden,
and see when and how they built Japanese Garden over there.

Can you believe they opened it in 1915, almost a centry ago?
Now almost one million visitors from all over the world enjoy it.
(QBG visitors? About 300,000 annually) 

Mr. Rover:
Can I borrow this news and related comments for our high school web sites in Korea

Dr. Minn;
Yes, Sir, you may.
Please do.