Exhibitors
Show Gardens
Mr Xiang-Qiang Chen & Mr Ting-Feng Liu
The Butterfly Lovers
Designer: Ting-Feng Liu
Sponsor: Xiang-Qiang Chen
Contractor: Xiang-Qiang Chen
Click here to view a panorama of this garden.
To view a hi-res version of the image click on the image
This is the first time a Chinese garden has been built at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show. The classical styled garden introduces people to China’s Romeo and Juliet. The story is a tragedy that took place in the Chinese Zhejiang province in the Dongjin dynasty, which has been popular in China for more than 1,600 years. The tale is that of a girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to become a scholar. She meets another scholar and falls in love. Unfortunately, the story ends in death tragedy but the lovers are reborn and turned to butterflies.
There are six sceneries which imply the six plots of the story; ‘Meeting on the bridge of weeds’, ‘Become sworn brothers under a willow’, ‘Study in the same school for three years’, ‘Say 18 goodbyes on the back way’, ‘Separate in Long Pavilion’, ‘Changed to butterflies’.
Most of the plants used are part of the story and are heavy with Chinese symbolism - camellias, orchids, iris and nandina. Pine, bamboo and plum are three friends in the rough winter symbolising the protagonists’ love from friendship. Bamboo is key as it symbolises the integrity of scholars. Willow represents the waist of a woman and azalea represents the cuckoo (same word in Chinese) which is said to be weeping blood when the mountain turns red with azalea flowers in spring. Water is a Chinese symbol of wisdom and intelligence. Stones are symbols of mountains which Chinese people believe give mercy and generosity.