Post 10

The garden style that resonated the most with me was the Roman gardens. The Roman gardens were beautiful, often peristyle gardens that were usually a place of relaxation for Romans. I love the concept and ideas of Roman gardens and have spent a total of 2 months in Italy and I loved the gardens I have encountered during my travels. I have studied Italian Renaissance art as well and there are many parallels in each art form as well as the gardens are portrayed a lot in the painting and artworks.

Another reason I love the Roman gardens is due to the idea of "Otium."I believe we all need to have time to think and reflect on life and the arts in gardens. This is a proactive way to spend your leisurely time and to promote relaxation. I also believe it was this philosophy that helped attribute to their rich culture. The Roman garden was not only a place for relaxation but it was also a place of learning. Many of the gardens had murals and statues that represented religious teachings as well as brought in an artistic element to the garden. The statues were usually Greek and represented a mythological figure. These statues were also a good way to show different art forms and styles around the world.

The romans also used other garden features besides statues such as water features and trellises. These add extra artistic elements, which only added to the beauty of these gardens. The gardens usually consisted of garden bed, which were filled with flowers from the region and surround by trimmed bushes. The combination of garden and culture along with religion and not to mention the aesthetically pleasing quality of the gardens are what resonated the strongest with me personally.

If you want to learn more about Roman gardens visit: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/garden/roman-garden.asp

Sources 

http://romacitizens.blogspot.com/2011/04/subura-community-gardens-now-free.html

http://imgarcade.com/1/ancient-roman-gardens/

http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/archaeologist-kathryn-gleason-on-roman-gardens/

http://bonvoyage-travelling.blogspot.com/2013/02/villa-borghese-gardens-rome-italy.html