The UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden is situated in the Bel-Air community of Los Angeles.  Inspired by the gardens of Kyoto, it was originally designed in 1959 by Landscape Architect Nagao Sakurai and Garden Designer Kazuo Nakamura.  A reconstruction was required after the garden suffered damages from heavy rains in 1969; UCLA Professor of Art and Campus Architect Koichi Kawana led the re-design.

This spectacular garden is a must-see if you are in the Los Angeles area.

According to the Garden Guide:
“The complex aesthetic values of traditional Japanese gardens stem mainly from Zen Buddhism.  Among Zen concepts expressed in garden design are asymmetry and a preference for the imperfect and for odd numbers;  naturalness and an avoidance of the forced and artificial; hiding part of the whole to achieve profundity with mystery; a quality of maturity and mellowness that comes with age and time; tranquility, simplicity, and austerity.”

One of the most amazing artifacts in the garden is a stone carved more than 1,000 years ago.  It features Buddha seated in 16 different positions of worship!

For more information and to book a reservation (which is required) go to http://www.japanesegarden.ucla.edu/