Modern Garden Decoration: Fountains and their Roots
Modern Garden Decoration: Fountains and their Roots
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. From the beginning, outdoor fountains were soley there to serve as functional elements. Water fountains were linked to a spring or aqueduct to supply drinkable water as well as bathing water for cities, townships and villages. Used until the 19th century, in order for fountains to flow or shoot up into the air, their source of water such as reservoirs or aqueducts, had to be higher than the water fountain in order to benefit from gravity. Acting as an element of adornment and celebration, fountains also generated clean, fresh drinking water. Bronze or stone masks of animals and heroes were frequently seen on Roman fountains. Muslims and Moorish garden designers of the Middle Ages included fountains to re-create smaller models 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 adding decorative baroque-style fountains at the point where restored Roman aqueducts arrived into the city.
Since indoor plumbing became the standard of the day for fresh, drinking water, by the end of the 19th century urban fountains were no longer needed for this purpose and they became purely ornamental. The introduction of unique water effects and the recycling of water were two things made possible by replacing gravity with mechanical pumps.
Modern-day fountains function mostly as decoration for open spaces, to honor individuals or events, and enhance entertainment and recreational activities.
The Father Of Roman Public Fountain Design
The Father Of Roman Public Fountain Design There are numerous popular water fountains in the city center of Rome. Practically all of them were planned, designed and constructed by one of the finest sculptors and artists of the 17th century, Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Traces of his life's work are obvious throughout the roads of Rome because, in addition to his capabilities as a fountain designer, he was also a city architect. A celebrated Florentine sculptor, Bernini's father guided his young son, and they ultimately transferred to Rome to fully exhibit their art, chiefly in the form of community water fountains and water features.
The young Bernini was an great worker and earned praise and patronage of important artists as well as popes. At the start he was recognized for his sculptural abilities. He used his expertise and melded it seamlessly with Roman marble, most notably in the Vatican. Though many artists had an influence on his work, Michelangelo had the most profound effect.