Lit. "gardens in the style of Japanese painting." Also called sakuteikiryū 作庭記流 (gardens in the lineage of the *Sakuteiki 作庭記). A modern term used for pond and stream chisen 池泉 gardens of the Heian period in contradistinction to Chinese style dry landscape gardens *karesansui 枯山水 of the Muromachi period.
These gardens emphasize the gentle, curving lines of streams and ponds, as well as the vibrant colors of seasonal plants. Although there is no evidence that these gardens were based on the qualities of so-called yamato-e やまと絵 or paintings in Japanese style, the perceived aesthetic similarities account for the term yamato-e shiki teien. Although these garden and painting styles derived from Tang dynasty Chinese prototypes, after the adaptation of later and different Chinese styles associated with the Song dynasty and Zen 禅 culture, these Tang-Heian styles came to be considered "Japanese."