Bernini: The Genius Behind Italy's Most Impressive Water Fountains
Bernini: The Genius Behind Italy's Most Impressive Water Fountains Bernini's earliest fountain, named Barcaccia, is a masterful work of art found at the foot of the Trinita dei Monti in Piaza di Spagna. To this day, you will see Roman residents and vacation goers occupying this space to revel in chit chatter and being among other people.
Today, the city streets around Bernini's fountain are a trendy place where people go to meet, something which the artist would have been pleased to learn. The master's very first fountain of his career was built at around 1630 at the request of Pope Urbano VIII. People can now see the fountain as an illustration of a commanding ship slowly sinking into the Mediterranean. The great flooding of the Tevere that covered the whole region with water in the 16th was memorialized by this momentous fountain as recorded by documents dating back to this time. In what became his sole extended absence from Italy, Bernini {journeyed | traveled] to France in 1665.
The Genesis Of Outdoor Fountains
The Genesis Of Outdoor Fountains The incredible construction of a fountain allows it to provide clean water or shoot water high into air for dramatic effect and it can also serve as an excellent design feature to complete your home. Pure practicality was the original purpose of fountains. Residents of urban areas, townships and small towns utilized them as a source of drinking water and a place to wash up, which meant that fountains needed to be linked to nearby aqueduct or spring. Until the late 19th, century most water fountains operated using gravity to allow water to flow or jet into the air, therefore, they needed a supply of water such as a reservoir or aqueduct located higher than the fountain. Fountains were not only utilized as a water source for drinking water, but also to decorate homes and celebrate the designer who created it. Roman fountains often depicted imagery of animals or heroes made of bronze or stone masks. To depict the gardens of paradise, Muslim and Moorish garden planners of the Middle Ages introduced fountains to their designs. Fountains enjoyed a considerable role in the Gardens of Versailles, all part of French King Louis XIV’s desire to exercise his power over nature. The Romans of the 17th and 18th centuries manufactured baroque decorative fountains to exalt the Popes who commissioned them as well as to mark the location where the restored Roman aqueducts entered the city.
The end of the 19th century saw the increase in usage of indoor plumbing to supply drinking water, so urban fountains were relegated to purely decorative elements. The creation of special water effects and the recycling of water were two things made possible by swapping gravity with mechanical pumps.
Modern-day fountains serve mostly as decoration for open spaces, to honor individuals or events, and compliment entertainment and recreational events.
Use a Garden Wall Fountain To Help Boost Air Quality
Use a Garden Wall Fountain To Help Boost Air Quality
If what you are after is to breathe life into an otherwise uninspiring ambiance, an indoor wall fountain can be the answer. Pleasant to the senses and advantageous to your health, these indoor features are an excellent addition to your home. The science behind the idea that water fountains can be beneficial for you is undeniable. Modern-day appliances create positive ions which are balanced out by the negative ions released by water features. Undeniable favorable changes in mental and physical health occur when negative ions overpower positive ions. The higher serotonin levels resulting from these types of features make people more attentive, serene and energized. Indoor wall fountains {generate negative ions which serve to heighten your mood and eliminate air pollutants. They also help to eliminate allergies, contaminants as well as other types of irritants. And lastly, dust particles and microbes in the air are eliminated and lead to improved health.
Builders of the First Fountains
Builders of the First Fountains Multi-talented individuals, fountain designers from the 16th to the late 18th century often functioned as architects, sculptors, artists, engineers and highly educated scholars all in one. Leonardo da Vinci, a Renaissance artist, was notable as an inspired intellect, inventor and scientific virtuoso. He systematically registered his findings in his now celebrated notebooks about his research into the forces of nature and the properties and mobility of water. Early Italian fountain engineers converted private villa settings into ingenious water exhibits full with symbolic meaning and natural elegance by coupling creativity with hydraulic and horticultural expertise. Known for his incredible skill in archeology, architecture and garden creations, Pirro Ligorio, the humanist, delivered the vision behind the splendors in Tivoli. Masterminding the extraordinary water marbles, water attributes and water antics for the numerous mansions in the vicinity of Florence, some other fountain creators were well versed in humanistic topics and time-honored scientific texts.