Event: September General Meeting
Speaker: Patricia B. Smith
Topic: Islamic Gardens on Two Continents
Date: Thursday, September 28 • 7 p.m.
Location: Shepard Garden & Arts Center, 3330 McKinley Blvd, Sacramento
The history of classic Islamic gardens is long, interesting and well documented. At our Sept. 28 meeting, Patricia B. Smith will explore their unique styles and origins in India, China and Spain. Pat is a writer (who was a reporter and editor at the Sacramento Bee for 22 years) and inveterate traveler.
She has been observing these ancient and seemingly impossible gardens for decades. She saw her first one inside the mosque complex in Xi’an, China, the terminus of the Silk Road.
Surprisingly, water is one of the main subtle and refined – and of course, necessary – element of Islamic gardens. Considering that their origins are in mostly arid regions of Asia and the Mideast, one appreciates all the more their refreshing and tranquil demeanor.
Think oasis, geometry and contemplation interacting in context with elaborate buildings. Islamic gardens contrast dramatically with typical European gardens. Pat will show us how.
