I visited Jichang Garden, the "Garden of Nurtured Leisure", a celebrated Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) classical garden located within Xihui Park in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, during my previous trip.
Renowned for its masterful use of borrowed scenery, seamlessly incorporating the silhouettes of Huishan and Xishan mountains into its composition, Jichang Garden stands as a supreme example of Jiangnan landscape design.
Jichang Garden under the lens of Giampiero Arcese. [Photo provided to wuxi.gov.cn]
Every pavilion, rock formation, and stretch of water is calibrated with intellectual precision. Nothing is accidental; everything is composed.
Often visited by emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the garden embodies a vision of culture in which aesthetics are not decorative but structural — a disciplined harmony between nature, architecture and philosophical thought.
Jichang Garden under the lens of Giampiero Arcese. [Photo provided to wuxi.gov.cn]
Walking through it, one feels the refined ingenuity of Chinese civilization, one of the most sophisticated and advanced in human history. Here, beauty is not displayed; it is constructed with restraint, intelligence, and extraordinary sensitivity.
I also met two young people posing for a photo shoot in traditional costume inside Jichang Garden, which brought to mind my knowledge of Chinese costume and aesthetics from the great dynasties of the past.
The girl, in a beautiful hanfu, reminded me of the voluptuous beauty depicted by Zhang Xuan and Zhou Fang, the most celebrated painters of the Tang Dynasty (618–907), known for portraying opulent women in elaborate garments — figures full and rounded like peonies. The icon of this aesthetic was Yang Yuhuan, the legendary concubine for whom Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty.
She influenced fashion and helped shape a new ideal of beauty in China — the aesthetic of the "peony woman". Today, the dominant standard is extreme thinness, often idealized by models who seem far from real health.
Jichang Garden under the lens of Giampiero Arcese. [Photo provided to wuxi.gov.cn]
A balanced middle ground between past ideals and contemporary standards could still offer a healthier reference for beauty — one that values self-esteem and awareness of one's own body.
The author is an Italian fashion designer and fashion historian. He visited Jichang Garden in Wuxi this year and shared his travel notes on Xiaohongshu.
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