The Original Fountain Designers
The Original Fountain Designers
Water feature designers were multi-talented people from the 16th to the later part of the 18th century, often serving as architects, sculptors, artists, engineers and highly educated scholars all in one person. Throughout the Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci illustrated the artist as an imaginative genius, inventor and scientific virtuoso. He carefully registered his examinations in his now much celebrated notebooks about his research into the forces of nature and the properties and mobility of water. Coupling creativity with hydraulic and horticultural talent, early Italian water fountain creators changed private villa settings into brilliant water exhibits complete of emblematic meaning and natural beauty. The magnificence in Tivoli were provided by the humanist Pirro Ligorio, who was renowned for his capabilities in archeology, engineering and garden design. Masterminding the fascinating water marbles, water features and water antics for the various properties in the vicinity of Florence, some other water feature engineers were well versed in humanist themes as well as ancient scientific texts.
Attributes of Outdoor Sculpture in Archaic Greece
Attributes of Outdoor Sculpture in Archaic Greece Archaic Greeks were renowned for developing the first freestanding statuary; up until then, most carvings were made out of walls and pillars as reliefs. Most of the freestanding statues were of young, winsome male or female (kore) Greeks and are called kouros figures. The kouroi, viewed by the Greeks to portray beauty, had one foot stretched out of a fixed forward-facing posture and the male statues were always nude, with a compelling, powerful physique. In 650 BC, life-size variations of the kouroi began to be seen. The Archaic period was turbulent for the Greeks as they progressed into more refined forms of government and art, and acquired more data about the peoples and civilizations outside of Greece. Wars like The Arcadian wars, the Spartan invasion of Samos, and other wars among city-states are indicative of the disruptive nature of the time period, which was similar to other periods of historical disturbance. However, these conflicts did not significantly hinder the advancement of the Greek civilization.Where did Fountains Originate from?
Where did Fountains Originate from? The dramatic or decorative effect of a fountain is just one of the purposes it fulfills, in addition to delivering drinking water and adding a decorative touch to your property.Originally, fountains only served a functional purpose. Inhabitants 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 had to be linked to nearby aqueduct or spring. Up until the nineteenth, fountains had to be higher and closer to a water supply, including aqueducts and reservoirs, in order to take advantage of gravity which fed the fountains. Fountains were not only utilized as a water source for drinking water, but also to adorn homes and celebrate the designer who created it.
Animals or heroes made of bronze or stone masks were often times used by Romans to decorate their fountains. Muslims and Moorish landscaping designers of the Middle Ages included fountains to re-create smaller models of the gardens of paradise. King Louis XIV of France wanted to demonstrate his dominion over nature by including fountains in the Gardens of Versailles. To mark the entrance of the restored Roman aqueducts, the Popes of the 17th and 18th centuries commissioned the construction of baroque style fountains in the spot where the aqueducts entered the city of Rome
Indoor plumbing became the main source of water by the end of the 19th century thereby restricting urban fountains to mere decorative elements. Gravity was replaced by mechanical pumps in order to permit fountains to bring in clean water and allow for beautiful water displays.
Modern-day fountains serve mostly as decoration for open spaces, to honor individuals or events, and enhance entertainment and recreational activities.