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Curator's Corner
Brian Funk–Curator of the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
Brian Funk, Curator of the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
The Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden is one of Brooklyn Botanic Garden's most visited and beloved treasures. Constructed between 1914 and 1915, it was the first Japanese Garden created in an American public garden and is still considered one of the finest Japanese gardens outside Japan. Its three acres include a one-acre pond, viewing pavilion, torii, and shrine, as well as bridges, stone lanterns, and waterfalls. The garden's landscape is an iconic scene of serenity and tranquillity year-round, from the enchanting first cherry blossoms in spring to the colorful koi shimmering in the pond in summer to the brilliant foliage of Japanese maples in the fall to the tranquil winter scenes of the torii, bridges, and stone lanterns dusted with snow. Although it was designed to "mirror" nature insofar as the tree pruning suggests clouds; the stones, a rocky coastline; and the sculpted hills, mountains—the garden is, in fact, carefully controlled. This balance between the man-made and the natural is artfully maintained by Brian Funk, the curator of the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, with help from several gardeners and interns.
Brian first joined BBG as a gardener's aide in 1999, during a pivotal time for the Japanese Garden, as it was undergoing a major restoration. He was soon promoted to curator in 2000. "I consider myself fortunate to have had the opportunity to join BBG, because I always thought this would be a wonderful place to work. When I lived in Chicago, I often visited friends in New York, and during those visits I always made sure to visit BBG. When a job as a gardener's aide became available, I jumped at the opportunity. After that initial year of hard work and dedication, I was promoted to curator." As curator, Brian was given the opportunity to choose new plant selections including a variety of bamboos, perennials, and shrubs such as Pieris japonica and Nandina domestica, for placement throughout the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden and for use as groundcover, shoreline plantings, and privacy around the perimeter. The new plantings were initiated in 2000, and the restoration was recognized with the New York Landmark Conservancy's 2001 Preservation Award.
Brian found Brooklyn Botanic Garden to be the perfect place to work, as he has always held an interest in Japanese horticulture, particularly the art of ikebana and bonsai. Though Brian has learned the most through hands-on experience, he holds a bachelor of science in horticulture from the University of Nebraska and has supplemented his knowledge with formal training in Kyoto, Japan, from masters of Japanese gardening. In addition, he subscribes to the Journal of Japanese Gardening, a bimonthly English-language publication dedicated to the world of Japanese gardens and Japanese architecture.
Selecting plants is one of the most challenging yet rewarding responsibilities of the curator's job. Deaccessioning and accessioning—the consistent process of taking out and replacing plants—is especially crucial in a Japanese Garden, where it's important to limit the plant palette. Indeed, many authentic Japanese gardens only feature three kinds of plants. When choosing plants for the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, Brian aims to find plants with four-season interest. "I look for plants that look great year-round, such as plants that produce flowers in the spring and have great fall color or evergreen leaves but also have stunning shapes in winter like azaleas or enkianthus," he says. "Mahonias are new favorites in the back of the garden—they thrive in shade and produce yellow flowers in winter." Another favorite in the Japanese garden is bamboo, and the curator's task is to find the varieties that work best and that are noninvasive. "I confine bamboos to limited areas where they won't overtake other plants and use the appropriate variety for the area, such as Pseudosasa japonica. This plant is evergreen, never gets brown, and can grow up to an impressive height of 18 feet." Sound is also an important aspect of bamboos—they are noteworthy for lending an aural artistry to the garden as wind rustles through their branches and foliage.
Brian also chooses plants for their sculptural qualities and response to pruning, especially important in Japanese gardens. According to Brian, the gnarled and stunted Japanese black pines are his "pride and joy": "These plants are true works of art and living sculptures. They also give the best response to pruning; one can get the desired effect of old age through consistent thinning and shaping of the trees."
The declining Austrian pines are being replaced with Japanese white pines, which are softer, more delicate, and more responsive to the cloud pruning characteristic of a Japanese garden. Brian also enjoys the Japanese maples, which are ideal for pruning. He says, "Aesthetic pruning allows you to see through the branch structure. Pruning is also beneficial to plant health—it allows light to penetrate and promotes healthy air circulation around the plant."
In a Japanese garden, the form and texture of the plant are often more important than its flowers. Because pruning is so important in Japanese gardens, the precision and effectiveness of the curator's tools are critical. When Brian traveled to Japan to attend the Japanese Garden Intensive Seminar in Kyoto (part of the Research Center for Japanese Garden Art in Association with Kyoto University of Art and Design), he learned about advanced pruning practices and equipment: "I would say that nearly 75 percent of my work is pruning. I started with what I now consider 'clumsy' tools. When I visited Japan, I noticed that the tools were sharper, lighter, and better balanced. The work there is so intricate that the gardeners even handpick the old needles off the trees!" Today, Brian uses pruning shears, handsaws, hedge shears, and pole pruners, and his pruning work is supported by Brooklyn Botanic Garden arborists Alec Baxt and Chris Roddick. In the spring, fall, and winter, Brian shears shrubs before or after bloom.
Brian enjoys watching visitors' reactions to the breathtaking beauty of the Japanese garden: "I love seeing where visitors take most of their photos—and the various points that are most popular at different times of the day. That tells me what they are noticing most in the garden." Brian also is keenly aware that the garden offers relaxation and respite—and a chance to reconnect with nature, especially in the urban environment of New York City.
Brian also designed the planting scheme and helped plant the 300 Japanese tree peonies that make up the Garden's most recent collection. The vibrant colors and ephemeral beauty of these plants are stunning. In bloom, the dinner-plate-sized flowers offer unparalled shades of lavender, red, pink, yellow, and blush white. The national flower of China, tree peonies originated from Tibet. (Did you know that the emperor forbade others to grow tree peonies, reserving their beauty for his eyes only?!) Eventually, Japanese breeders—among the best tree peony horticulturists—bred them to be upright, with clear color and better hues. Brooklyn Botanic Garden's exquisite tree peonies are from Yatsuka-Cho, an area in Japan renowned for its unmatched tree peonies, which bloom on woody stems and have a graceful stature with glorious, full blossoms.
Because education is a key component of Brooklyn Botanic Garden's mission, it is also important that the garden help teach the public about Japanese culture. One way that Brian seeks to impart Japanese culture is through BBG's volunteer Garden Guide training program. Brian takes an active role in the training of BBG Garden Guides, who then share their knowledge of Japanese culture and gardening with the public through free garden tours for visitors and school groups.
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Visit the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden in BBG's Garden Stroll.