Contemporary Garden Decor: Fountains and their Roots
Contemporary Garden Decor: Fountains and their Roots The dramatic or decorative effect of a fountain is just one of the purposes it fulfills, in addition to providing drinking water and adding a decorative touch to your property.Pure functionality was the original role of fountains. Cities, towns and villages made use of nearby aqueducts or springs to supply them with potable water as well as water where they could bathe or wash. Until the late nineteenth, century most water fountains functioned 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. Bronze or stone masks of wildlife and heroes were frequently seen on Roman fountains.
During the Middle Ages, Muslim and Moorish garden planners incorporated fountains to create mini depictions of the gardens of paradise. King Louis XIV of France wanted to illustrate his dominion over nature by including fountains in the Gardens of Versailles. Seventeen and 18 century Popes sought to laud their positions by including beautiful baroque-style fountains at the point where restored Roman aqueducts arrived into the city.
Urban fountains built at the end of the nineteenth served only as decorative and celebratory ornaments since indoor plumbing provided the essential drinking water. Impressive water effects and recycled water were made possible by replacing the power of gravity with mechanical pumps.
Beautifying city parks, honoring people or events and entertaining, are some of the functions of modern-day fountains.
Ancient Fountain Artists
Ancient Fountain Artists
Often serving as architects, sculptors, artists, engineers and cultivated scholars all in one, from the 16th to the late 18th century, fountain designers were multi-talented people, During the Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci exemplified the artist as a inspired intellect, creator and scientific expert. With his astounding curiosity concerning the forces of nature, he explored the attributes and movement of water and also methodically annotated his findings in his now recognized notebooks. Early Italian water feature builders transformed private villa configurations into innovative water showcases complete with symbolic meaning and natural beauty by combining imagination with hydraulic and horticultural experience. The humanist Pirro Ligorio offered the vision behind the wonders in Tivoli and was celebrated for his virtuosity in archeology, architecture and garden design. Masterminding the phenomenal water marbles, water features and water pranks for the numerous properties near Florence, other water fountain builders were well versed in humanist themes as well as time-honored scientific texts.