Contemporary Garden Decoration: Fountains and their Beginnings
Contemporary Garden Decoration: Fountains and their Beginnings
The dramatic or decorative effect of a fountain is just one of the purposes it fulfills, in addition to supplying drinking water and adding a decorative touch to your property. Pure practicality was the original role of fountains. People in cities, towns and villages received their drinking water, as well as water to bathe and wash, via aqueducts or springs in the vicinity. Used until the nineteenth century, in order for fountains to flow or shoot up into the air, their origin of water such as reservoirs or aqueducts, had to be higher than the water fountain in order to benefit from the power of gravity. Fountains were an excellent source of water, and also served to decorate living areas and celebrate the designer. Animals or heroes made of bronze or stone masks were often used by Romans to beautify their fountains. Muslims and Moorish garden designers of the Middle Ages included fountains to re-create smaller versions of the gardens of paradise. The fountains found in the Gardens of Versailles were meant to show the power over nature held by King Louis XIV of France. The Popes of the 17th and 18th centuries were glorified with baroque style fountains built to mark the place of entry of Roman aqueducts.
Since indoor plumbing became the norm of the day for clean, drinking water, by the end of the 19th century urban fountains were no longer needed for this purpose and they became purely ornamental. The creation of special water effects and the recycling of water were 2 things made possible by swapping gravity with mechanical pumps.
Beautifying city parks, honoring people or events and entertaining, are some of the purposes of modern-day fountains.
Bernini: The Master of Italy's Greatest Water Fountains
Bernini: The Master of Italy's Greatest Water Fountains One can see Bernini's very first masterpiece, the Barcaccia fountain, at the foot of the Trinita dei Monti in Piaza di Spagna. This area continues to be filled with Roman locals and tourists who enjoy exchanging gossip or going over the day's news. Bernini would undoubtedly have been happy to know that people still flock to what has become one the city's trendiest areas, that around his amazing fountain. In about 1630, the great artist designed the very first water fountain of his career at the behest of Pope Ubano VIII. People can now see the fountain as a depiction of a commanding ship gradually sinking into the Mediterranean Sea. The great flooding of the Tevere that covered the whole region with water in the 16th was commemorated by this momentous fountain as recorded by reports dating back to this time.
In 1665, France was graced by Bernini's only extended voyage outside of Italy.
Discover Peace with Outdoor Water Features
Discover Peace with Outdoor Water Features You can find peace and tranquility by just having water in your garden. The sounds of a fountain are perfect to block out the noise in your neighborhood or in the city where you live. This is the perfect spot to relax and experience nature around you.
Bodies of water such as seas, oceans and rivers are commonly used in water therapies, as they are regarded as therapeutic. If what you seek out is a calming place where you can take your body and your mind to a faraway place, install a pond or fountain in your garden.
Contemporary Sculpture in Historic Greece
Contemporary Sculpture in Historic Greece Nearly all sculptors were paid by the temples to accentuate the intricate columns and archways with renderings of the gods up until the stage came to a close and many Greeks started to think of their religion as superstitious rather than sacred, when it became more common for sculptors to portray ordinary people as well. Portraiture, which would be recognized by the Romans upon their annexation of Greek civilization became conventional as well, and wealthy family members would often commission a rendering of their forebears to be placed in immense familial tombs. The usage of sculpture and other art forms varied through the many years of The Greek Classical period, a time of creative progress when the arts had more than one objective. Greek sculpture is probably appealing to us nowadays because it was an avant-garde experiment in the ancient world, so it doesn't make a difference whether its original function was religious zeal or artistic pleasure.