Feature Stories
Feng Shui Revival
By Kevin Chong published Aug 31, 2006
The millennia-old art of Feng Shui is enjoying renewed popularity with home sellers and buyers. And not just Asian ones.
AS A REALTOR, Donna Leyland knew that some spaces worked better than others, but couldn’t explain why. “I sell quite a few condos,” she says, “and when I walk in, I have a sense of what I call ‘flow.’ But I didn’t really identify it.” Leyland’s intuitive grasp of energy flow, one of the underlying principles of Feng Shui, led to her interest in the millennia-old Chinese art of placement. “It’s like anything else,” she says. “You embrace what works for you.”
Leyland is among an increasing number of non-Chinese incorporating Feng Shui principles into their own home’s design. The growth in this practice may surprise those familiar with the ancient art only as a 1990s fad, along with dial-up modems and the band Chumbawumba. Yet while media interest in this “ecological mysticism” peaked over a decade ago—when the influx of Hong Kong immigrants buying up real estate inspired both hysteria and curiosity in Vancouver—Feng Shui never went away. It has been used in designing projects like Lotus Living, a Richmond condo development from Cressey set to open in 2008, and Richmond’s Olympic speed-skating oval. Forty-three percent of Canadians, according to a 2004 poll by Lightspeed Research, “believe Feng Shui can improve your quality of life.”
Feng Shui, which literally means “wind-water” in Chinese, is a complicated system used to achieve harmony with one’s surroundings. According to the practice, one’s personal fortunes are influenced by environmental factors like the interaction of the “five elements” (wood, fire, earth, metal and water), which influences the flow of energy (“chi”) in one’s home, as well as personal data like one’s birthdate. Despite its complex spiritual underpinnings, Feng Shui appeals to many people because its principles translate to simple design solutions that help reduce clutter. “It’s more of a minimalist, simplistic approach,” says Leyland. “It all starts with the flow.” So no stairways facing the front door (because that lets all the energy leak out) and no sinks facing the stove (because then the “elements are in conflict”).
