Architecture Wednesday: Japanese-Inspired Midcentury

This home was built in the 1950s and then remodeled and expanded in 1964 by the owner and, Hal Theiderman, into a Japanese-inspired, Midcentury modern style with floor-to-ceiling windows and indoor/outdoor flow to beautiful gardens that surround the home.

The two-bedroom, three-bathroom, 2,240 square foot home is infused with a sense of artistry and calm and an appreciation of space and beauty mostly due to its lot at the end of peaceful Lake Drive overlooking Wildcat Canyon and Tilden Park.

You enter the home across a series of spherical stone pavers evoking the crossing of a river on lily pad; a Japanese maple grows up through the roof. As you enter through the gold painted door, you will notice many lovely details such as the jewel box kitchen, sliding wall panels, and the vintage clay lanterns that hang at the entry.

A balcony opens from the living room overlooking the lower garden, filled with rhododendrons, camelias, and ferns, and the canyon below. There is a tranquil reading room which opens to the front garden, and a formal dining room with built-in China cabinets and sliding doors out to a large roof deck.
The living room features wood paneled walls, a raised ceiling, a modernist brick fireplace, built-in bookshelves and clerestory windows above the main seating area. There was originally an observatory tower for gazing at the night sky and although the dome is no longer there and the tower is roofed, you can still climb the spiral stairs hidden behind a door from the dining room up to the viewing space.

Down the main spiral staircase you’ll find the marvelous principal bedroom with its own fireplace, a wall of windows opening to the garden, and a serene wood-paneled bathroom with theater-style vanity lights. At the opposite end of the room there is a large office space with a built-in desk; the office is separated by sliding wall panels. The secondary bedroom, with its own bath and built-in bookshelves also opens into the rear garden and courtyard.

Quibbles? Of course; the bathrooms are dated, as are some of the finishes, and the kitchen is too small and closed off. Plus, I’d open up that observation spot again and spend my evenings up there sipping a nice Pinto, but other than that it is all sorts or tranquil, both inside and out.

 Dwell

Serenity Now

One of Must See spots in Portland for Carlos and me is the Japanese Garden, one of the most peaceful, beautiful, calming spaces I’ve ever seen.

Overlooking the city, the Garden sits high in the West Hills of Portland and provides a sort of urban oasis for locals and travelers alike. Designed in 1963 with the idea that the experience of peace can contribute to a long-lasting peace, it encompasses 12 acres with eight separate garden styles, meandering streams, intimate walkways, a spectacular view of Mt. Hood, and an authentic Japanese Tea House.

Back in Miami, we had several small stone Pagodas in our garden and so we love to see these stone temples spread throughout the gardens.

The garden was inspired in the late 1950s by growing cultural ties between Oregon and Japan. Mayor Terry Schrunk and members of the Portland community conceived the idea of building a Japanese garden on the site of the old zoo in Washington Park. Their reasons were twofold: providing Portland with a garden of great beauty and serenity, while forging a healing connection to Japan on the heels of World War II.

At this time in U.S. history, Japanese gardens were founded across the country as a way to build cultural understanding. Needing no translation, an American could experience firsthand Japanese ideals and values, communicated simply through nature.

The site was dedicated in 1961, and Professor Takuma Tono of Tokyo Agricultural University was retained to design the Garden. Professor Tono’s plan included five different garden styles laid out on 5.5 acres. This was quite a departure from gardens in Japan which typically follow one singular style. His intention was to represent different historical developments in Japanese garden architecture and through that communicate Japanese culture to create a cultural exchange.

Being that it’s Portland, and on a hillside, there are steep waterfalls, and ponds and streams everywhere. The sound of trickling water is just one more tranquil note.

In 1967, the Garden formally opened to the public for the summer. Admission was $0.50 for adults and $0.25 for students. That year, more than 28,000 people came before the Garden closed for the winter.

One of the great things about this visit, was the display of Bonsai, some as old as three-hundred years. Carlos had purchased a Bonsai in Coconut Grove years ago, that we still have in our sunroom today and he loved seeing these far more ancient specimens.

In 1968, the Kashintei Tea House was constructed in Japan, shipped in pieces, and reassembled in the Garden. Other structures were added as the five gardens evolved. The Pavilion Gallery, which sits at the heart of the Flat Garden, was in Professor Tono’s original plan. However, it was not completed until 1980.

When the garden was expanded the old Tea House structure was turned into an exhibit space, and a new, modern, glass-walled Tea House was set near the entrance to overlook the hillside.

In the winter of 1981 it was decided that the Garden could be open year-round, and in 2015 the Garden partnered with architect Kengo Kuma to expand its footprint to accommodate its rapid visitor growth, as well as its ability to immerse visitors in Japanese arts and culture. In April 2017, the Garden’s new Cultural Village opened and featured three new structures—each one LEED-certified—that exist harmoniously with nature both inside and out.

My favorite spots are the Zen Gardens, and the graceful placement of stones, and the raking of designs into the sand. It’s just so calming.

Throughout the Garden’s history, it has been acclaimed by several visiting Japanese dignitaries as one of the most beautiful and authentic Japanese gardens in the world outside of the island nation, as well as one of the foremost Japanese cultural organizations in North America. When His Excellency Nobuo Matsunaga, the former Ambassador of Japan to the United States, visited the Portland Japanese Garden, he proclaimed it to be “the most beautiful and authentic Japanese garden in the world outside of Japan.”

I’d have to agree.

Portland Japanese Garden