Which expression of garden art / garden style that we have studied so far this semester resonated most strongly with you personally? Explain why.

The expression of garden style that resonated with me is the roman style gardens.  The peristyle gardens interest me because they are for the private sphere.  The luxury of a garden often used by one family is something that I would love to have in my home.  To have a place to relax and do work that is filled with frescos and plans would help anybody to relax on a daily basis.   The meaning of the garden that it is for praising gods and relaxing is my favorite purpose for a garden and personally what I feel that gardens should be used for.  The public gardens and ones meant for many families and all the pubic are great but I picture gardens as quaint as they were during the roman style.

            Being an art lover, the gardens that displayed the most art are the ones that stood out.  The use of frescos and art and to be able to show it off in the garden is something I would love to do in a garden. As we are studying art it is also important that we recognize the relationship of other art forms with garden art and the roman gardens use their positive relationship to the advantages.  I would have loved to see other gardens that used painting and frescos as prominently as the Romans did but this is the reason the roman garden stood out to me.

Photo Credits:

http://www.lifeinitaly.com/garden/roman-garden.asp

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/gardening/article-2301045/Pompeii-Exquisite-frescoes-reveal-just-enchanting-Roman-gardens-were.html

https://www.pinterest.com/wildrosewoman/roman-garden-frescoes/

Characterize the Italian Renaissance Garden

Man vs. nature could characterize the Italian renaissance gardens.  This common tug and harmony between the two creates a unique type of garden, one that utilizes the earth to its fullest.  Garden art and nature are often viewed blurred together because it is manipulation of nature without changing the raw material; it is considered one with nature. Jacopo Bonfadio says “a third nature” would mesh together art and nature where they improve each other no matter what order they are manipulated in.  This is a concept that exists in the every day life of the people during the Italian renaissance.

The Italians had a very specific way they liked to organize their gardens, a “divine order”.  The owner should be able to look and admire from the villa and at the villa; therefore the villa will be raised above the garden.  The gardens had a lot of symmetry and proportion, while framing the villas; this can also be referred to as axial alignment.  Early Italian renaissance gardens were made for thought and pleasure.  When the Medici came into ruling they used the garden to show their power and rule. Some key features of the Italian renaissance garden its terraces, a pergola, a water organ, and a fountain. During this time a large step was taken in the direction of having more high tech features and an example of this is the water organ, which played noises similar to the song of birds through water pressure. The focus is on the way plants are planted, location, color, height; it determines how one experiences a garden.  Some plants and sculptures are even used as status symbols and messages. The Italian Renaissance gardens purpose is to show the beauty of nature and inspired many of the gardens that came after it.

Photo citations:

http://www.ctrlzak.com/archive/SP_Topiaria.html

http://www.arabianknightonline.com/Details/866/Renaissance-gardens-inspire-Bulgari-jewels-