From Folly to Follies

Fülszöveg

Gardens are mirrors of the soul. Throughout the ages, they have reflected the never-ending question of how man stands in relation to nature and his environment. From the sixteenth century onwards, architects, painters and garden designers have attempted to subject nature to their concepts of order and beauty - for the benefit of noble clients.
Based on the prototype of the Medici gardens in Florence, with their fountains, alleys and statuary, similar "charming deceptions" - or follies - were laid out in England, France and Germany. The visitor traversed these gardens along footpaths which led to attractive stations en route: playfiil water features, grottoes, nymphs, pagodas and small temples. The intention was that he should follow a pre-ordained route which would slowly uncover the hidden aims of the landscape architect.
The reader of this volume is led through a cornucopia of gardens from centuries past - along the path of initiation, the path to knowledge and the libertarian... Tovább

Fülszöveg

Gardens are mirrors of the soul. Throughout the ages, they have reflected the never-ending question of how man stands in relation to nature and his environment. From the sixteenth century onwards, architects, painters and garden designers have attempted to subject nature to their concepts of order and beauty - for the benefit of noble clients.
Based on the prototype of the Medici gardens in Florence, with their fountains, alleys and statuary, similar "charming deceptions" - or follies - were laid out in England, France and Germany. The visitor traversed these gardens along footpaths which led to attractive stations en route: playfiil water features, grottoes, nymphs, pagodas and small temples. The intention was that he should follow a pre-ordained route which would slowly uncover the hidden aims of the landscape architect.
The reader of this volume is led through a cornucopia of gardens from centuries past - along the path of initiation, the path to knowledge and the libertarian itinerary to the garden of illusion.
Gontaining previously unpublished photographs, contemporary engravings and plans, this books captures the short-lived and the transient, unique to every garden. All aspects of garden culture are examined and turned into a magnificent sensual experience. We invite the reader to indulge in a colourful journey of discovery, from France's tiny hidden pavilions, through the creative exuberance of English gardens, on into iilusionistic 19th-century gardens peppered with artificial ruins that introduce a flavour of antiquity.
Vissza