한국국제교류재단

COVER STORY

Unique and diverse
By Bark Kyung-ja Director (Traditional Landscape Preservation Institute)

Gardens are broader in scope than some people imagine. One of them is Ha Long Bay, a famous scenic site in Viet Nam.

ASEAN’s 10 countries fall within the geopolitical boundaries determined by China and India. They are island states made up of many small islands, peninsulas, and inland countries that have a tropical or sub-tropical climate. ASEAN forged a close bond—albe it not necessarily of their choosing—with the West in the late 16th century, when explorers began to set sail en masse in search of spices. This is the backdrop of ASEAN’s garden culture, which is based on the indigenous culture of each country while also having certain features in common. The first things that usually come to mind when thinking of Southeast Asia are lush scenic spots and tropical forests full of palm trees and exotic flowers. Most of us associate gardens with tree-rich botanical gardens, but gardens aremuch broader in scope than some people imagine: Buddhist gardens, which includel and scaping, the temple, and pagodas, are gardens, as are, in a very broad sense, urban landscapes. The June issue of the ASEAN Culture House Monthly invites you to explore the diversity of ASEAN’s garden culture, which is impossible to de fine with a single trait.