Gian Lorenzo Bernini's Water Features
Gian Lorenzo Bernini's Water Features There are many famous water fountains in the city center of Rome. One of the best ever sculptors and artists of the 17th century, virtually all of them were designed, conceptualized and constructed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. He was furthermore a city architect, in addition to his abilities as a fountain engineer, and records of his life's work are evident throughout the avenues of Rome. Bernini's father, a renowned Florentine sculptor, mentored his young son, and they ultimately moved to Rome, in order to fully express their art, primarily in the form of public water fountains and water features. The young Bernini was an exceptional worker and received compliments and backing of significant artists as well as popes. At the beginning he was recognized for his sculptural skills. Most famously in the Vatican, he utilized a base of expertise in historical Greek architecture and melded it seamlessly with Roman marble. Though he was influenced by many, Michelangelo had the most profound effect on him, both personally and professionally.
Where did Landscape Fountains Begin?
Where did Landscape Fountains Begin? A fountain, an amazing piece of engineering, not only supplies drinking water as it pours into a basin, it can also launch water high into the air for an extraordinary effect.The central purpose of a fountain was originally strictly functional.
Cities, towns and villages made use of nearby aqueducts or springs to supply them with drinking water as well as water where they could bathe or wash. 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. Designers thought of fountains as wonderful additions to a living space, however, the fountains also served to supply clean water and honor the artist responsible for building it. The main components used by the Romans to create their fountains were bronze or stone masks, mostly depicting animals or heroes. Muslims and Moorish garden designers of the Middle Ages included fountains to re-create smaller models of the gardens of paradise. To show his dominance over nature, French King Louis XIV included fountains in the Garden of Versailles. The Romans of the 17th and 18th centuries manufactured baroque decorative fountains to glorify the Popes who commissioned them as well as to mark the location where the restored Roman aqueducts entered the city.
Urban fountains created at the end of the nineteenth served only as decorative and celebratory adornments since indoor plumbing provided the essential drinking water. Fountains using mechanical pumps instead of gravity enabled fountains to bring recycled water into living spaces as well as create unique water effects.
Modern fountains are used to embellish public spaces, honor individuals or events, and enrich recreational and entertainment events.