For 12 years, April Perkinson, a jazz pianist, has lived in a spacious, old apartment in Kawasaki City. Once sunny and inviting, her south-facing residence was recently blocked by the construction of a skyscraper next door. What to do?
One thing she was determined to avoid was the hassle of a move. "Wild dogs wouldn't drag me out of here," she says, pointing to her parlor grand piano and 12 years' accumulation of belongings. Fortunately, she found another solution to her problem: lightening up her home using the ancient Chinese art of feng shui, combined with Western interior-decorating know-how.
Feng shui, which literally means "wind and water," has been practiced in China for more than 2,000 years. It is believed to help foster health, wealth and happiness by removing blockages in the flow of qi (the universal life force) in a person's immediate environment. Feng shui experts, who study for many years to master their art, analyze the qi flow in a space using the ba-gua, a chart derived from the Chinese classic "I Qing (Book of Changes)."