Italian Renassiance-Humanism

These gardens incorporated the influence of humanism which was attitudes towards a natural world that highly emphasized Greek and Roman thought. These influences incorporated new ideas into the gardens if the Italian Renaissance. One idea was the planting of trees around the garden to provide some shade for people as they walked through and enjoyed the physical beauty of the gardens. This related to the overall geometry in nature that Alberti saw. This was meant to provide the garden with overall symmetry and proportion leading to more of an overall formal look to the garden. Although the villa was built as a country retreat, the shift to formal olive trees and fieds can be seen in many other Tuscan gardens.

Another feature that was introduced to the gardens during the Humanism time period was idea of the villas. This was meant to be a setting for the intellectual life and demonstration of aesthetic appreciation. The front side of the villa was completely open, demonstrating the architectural taste of this time to illustrate the different elements to the garden. The front was meant to represent openness and the back was meant to represent a secret garden. This idea was known as spatial fusion. Another influence within the villa had to do with sitting back, relaxing and enjoying the painting of Florentine quattrocento. This painting did not abandon the Christian faith, but it did heavily emphasize the importance of  human achievement.

Another important feature that was influenced on the Italian renaissance gardens were the knot gardens. These knot gardens represented work of a noble man and a Domincan monk. This art was a wood cut illustration stemmed from architectural influence. The school of Fontainebleau introduced this idea which transferred to the gardens. One book that heavily emphasized this design expressed the passion for architecture and the deep intricacy of gardens. These woodcut illustrations were similar to the grottoes, grove and pergolas. These all become further inspiration for garden designers of several generations and especially throughout the renaissance.
























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Religious meaning in Roman, Medieval and Islamic Gardens

         The Islamic gardens were extremely representative of the future paradise that they would live in during the after life. If they prayed and went to the garden a lot to praise their God, then they would be able to have  a great paradise to go to after their after life. They had the four rivers of life that resembled honey, milk, water and wine. The center body of water where these four rivers meet is known as the oasis which is representative of the oasis of life. Because they lived in such a hot climate the Islamics would want a lot of water in their garden to escape to so that added to the overall paradise element. This hot climate encouraged them to want to escape to their garden so the water provided an escape from the hot and dry climate that their God would live in.

   

        The Medieval gardens were meant to sit with others in company to enjoy courtly love. These gardens had religious meaning through the different types of gardens that existed. They had enclosed gardens that resembled Mary because she was the virgin Mary and was essentially enclosed. These gardens would contain a statue f her in the middle of the garden to resemble her as the main focus. Another type of garden that carried a religious meaning were the cloister gardens because they were  part of the abbey but were behind it or beside it. They represented Eden. Similar to the Muslim gardens, the cloisters had four rivers as well but they were represented as the rivers of Eden.




Although roman gardens resembled sophistication and wealth typically, there was a religious meaning incorporated into them as well. The Romans heavily valued their architecture within their gardens. Their architecture related to the Gods through paintings and figures within the garden. There was also a spiritual element that was captured in the harbors, headlands, shores, rivers and groves. They had the Persian influence which gave them a rather symmetrical style with a central axis or main access. This could have suggested that there was one way into the garden and one way out. Therefore when Romans went to the garden to  have a spiritual connection with the Gods they had only one way to walk in to reach the Gods and one way to leave the Gods.

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     Gardens have been an influential element within European culture for centuries. They express the intrinsic value of the environment in a different way through the architectural lay out of the gardens. Throughout Europe there are several different types and styles of gardens. The Roman gardens were quite different than the Greek gardens as well as Spanish gardens and English gardens. Each had separate architectural touches and  garden layouts.
      Romans utilized their gardens for specific entertainment and only allowed certain people to enter into their gardens. Therefore the Romans utilized their gardens to enjoy the more natural element of their gardens. This was called "Otium" which was meant to enjoy others company and relax in their garden's beauty. I think that this is important to note that the Romans not only appreciated their gardens natural beauty but perhaps they also enjoyed their rural surroundings right outside of their gardens. I think that they used their gardens beauty as a bridge into appreciating the earth's natural beauty outside of their garden. However, the Romans made their gardens their main focus of beauty because they were more formal which established a more wealthy presentation to company.
      English gardens were more symbolic of courtly love, which proposed for one and their significant other to go to the garden and enjoy it on a more intimate level though reading a poem or literature. The natural beauty and landscape around the gardens was heavily valued by the English. Flower gardens were very popular in English Medieval gardens. Perhaps this is because they connected the importance of courtly love to beauty and happiness and flowers seemed to promote that message. Natural water was highly valued as well, such as motes and lakes around the whole property and garden. The English had smaller and more enclosed gardens because they seemed to not promote their class as much as what the Romans did. Perhaps the smaller localization of Europe after the Roman Empire created this dynamic and people stayed at home more and kept to themselves.

Medieval Style Garden





Roman Style Garden


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