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Minutes of Executive Committee meetings
Inside the circle, outside the square
Item is a montage video of photographs of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen gardens with musical accompaniment. The film begins with images of street scenes in Chinatown, focusing on neon lights, nightlife, and shops. The visuals segue into peaceful scenes of the gardens, focusing primarily on the views of the garden through the leak windows and screens, the curved roofs of the pavilions, the water and reflections, and the patterned paving stones.
Correspondence - federal sales tax
Minutes of Administration Committee meetings
Photographs [documenting the construction of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden]
Records of the Building Committee
Series consists of correspondence and reports.
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden - a friendly bridge
Item is a documentary on the construction of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden. The first section discusses the development of the classical garden in Suzhou, its history, and its purposes. This narration is illustrated with footage of morning scenes of streets and parks, the Yangzi River, and several gardens in the city. The second and much longer section covers the construction of the Vancouver garden. Footage of the construction is combined with narration describing the process; with emphasis throughout placed on how little the construction of the garden has changed since the Song Dynasty in the use of hand tools, traditional building methods, and traditional materials.
Specific stages of construction examined are the importing of the materials from China, the construction of the pillars and the assembling of the pavilions, clay tile roofing and roof finishing, the placement of Lake Tai rocks and the thin tall stones, the courtyard paving and internal tiling, the ‘leak window’ construction, and the construction and finishing work of the screens and railings in the carpentry shop. Also included is a short interview with Joe Wai, project architect, in which he discusses the background of the garden project. The documentary concludes with footage of the opening ceremony with a Chinese delegation, and footage of the completed garden.
Item is a documentary film about the construction of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Gardens. It is divided into two sections: the first section is a discussion of the classical Chinese gardens in Suzhou while the second, much longer, section discusses the construction of the gardens in Vancouver. It uses footage filmed during the construction process, descriptive narration, and short segments of an interview with Joe Wai, one of the project architects.
The documentary opens with narration about the importance of water to the region and the history of the region, illustrated with footage of boating and agricultural life. The city of Suzhou is introduced with narrated scenes of the city, canals, and tourist destinations. Next the film explores a few of Suzhou’s famous gardens. The gardens discussed are: The Master of Fish Nets Garden, The Humble Administrator’s Garden, Lion Grove Garden, and The Lingering Garden. The film then concludes this section with a discussion of design elements and the Taoist elements of each feature.
The film then moves to Vancouver, beginning with footage of famous city landmarks and city views (e.g. Lions Gate Bridge, Canada Place, the Skytrain) with an emphasis on the modern technological nature of the city. Street scenes of Chinatown are the backdrop to a discussion of the history of Chinese people in Canada, the development of the Chinese Cultural center, and the pre-construction process of getting the approval and funding to build the garden. Discussion of the construction of the garden focuses on the Suzhou artisans who built the garden according to traditional means, emphasising the use of traditional tools, building methods, and materials. This is illustrated with footage of moving the Lake Tai rocks by hand and placing them into position.
Tthe film talks about the artisans, with scenes of the builders socialising at a banquet, singing, and playing table tennis. The documentary then focuses on the finishing touches and role they play in the finished garden. The documentary concludes with the official opening ceremony with dignitaries and the artisans followed by footage of the completed garden.
The item is a recording of a segment of a longer news program called ‘People Will Talk’ hosted by Laurier LaPierre on the subject of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese garden. The segment is in two main parts, the first part is a report by David Kincaid which includes footage of the construction of the gardens and later footage of the gardens in their completed state. Narration accompanying the footage describes the history of the classical Chinese garden in general, the construction efforts, and the goals of the final project, and some of the theories around the art form of the classical Chinese garden.
The second part is an interview with Sue Yung Li, a landscape architect and filmmaker from San Francisco. They discuss the role of the classical Chinese garden in Chinese culture as a source of artistic inspiration, the difference between a Chinese and a Japanese garden, the importance of rock and water in the garden, the accessibility of these kinds of gardens to the western audience. They also discuss elements of Li’s personal life, footage of the construction of the gardens and later footage of the gardens in their completed state.
Minutes of Administration Committee meetings
Records of the Finance Committee
Series consists of reports from this committee responsible for the Garden's financial statements, budget, and its financial strategies.
Correspondence - federal sales tax
Plans - Strategic Planning Program
Item is a television program in which Sandra Samartino performs yoga in the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. The production is accompanied by repeating electronic music, but there is no narration. The yoga poses are set against the rocks, moon gates, lattice work, pavilions, and often presented only reflected in the water.
Minutes of meetings of Board of Trustees
Videos - Refreshment for the Heart
Records of the Documentation Committee
Series consists of correspondence, minutes, reports and records related to documentation. Arranged alphabetically.
The construction of the Garden involved a level of cooperation between the government of China and Canada that was still rare in the early 1980s. As well, the Garden was built by Chinese artisans who used ancient methods and tools. In 1984, the committee was established to ensure that the unique circumstances which led to the Garden's creation would be documented. It was struck down in 1987 after the completion of the project.
The push hands video manual, volume 1
Item is an instructional video teaching the four hands technique of push hands Tai Chi. The introduction and the conclusion of the video are filmed in the courtyard of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden, and include footage of the courtyard, paving stones, surrounding rocks, leak windows, and other architectural elements.
Item is a documentary film about the Taoist meanings of various elements of the design in the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden. The film opens with a street scene of Chinese New Year, including lion dances, firecrackers, and a parade. The main film is an interview with James Yu, the maintenance coordinator of the garden. He discusses the contrasting elements (yin and yang), the different kinds of plants (plum, bamboo, and pine), the leak windows, the upturned eves, and the reflections in the water, and then presents a Taoist interpretation of each of them. The narration is supplemented with film footage of the gardens illustrating each point in turn. The film concludes with more footage of garden views and details.
Item is a preliminary site plan drawing for the expansion of the park with an area called the Penjing Garden (identified in yellow). The locations of several trees within the garden is indicated. Plan also includes an outline of various phases of the Chinese Cultural Centre construction. Project number 88 05, sheet number 1 of 1
Minutes of meetings of Education Committee
Summaries - Beijing opera mask project
Records of the Maintenance and Repairs Committee
Series consists of correspondence and reports.