Villa d'Este .. Fantastical Gateway to Italy's Splendor

Allow yourself to give way to the atmosphere of Villa d’Este, and you’ll experience a fantastical gateway to the historic splendor of an Italy long past. A visit affords the opportunity to immerse yourself in the fireworks of spectacular water features that will animate your passage through an architectural masterwork of design and invention.

Villa d'Este (Photo: Alice Joyce)

Commissioned by Cardinal Ippolito d’Este, Villa d’Este is generally proclaimed to be the ultimate Renaissance garden. Sited near Hadrian’s Villa, with a design by Pirro Ligorio, the vast gardens spread across a steep landscape, taking in an enchanting vista of the town of Tivoli.

Villa d’Este – Photo: Alice Joyce

Ligorio employed terraces to work with the difficult yet dramatic terrain, creating a complex symmetry to delineate, and to draw one into the layout of the garden scheme. Although many original sculptures no longer exist to enliven the setting, the flamboyant water elements, for which the garden is known, still effectively startle and delight.

Villa d’Este (Photo: Alice Joyce)

To walk the Villa’s pathways is to be immersed in the art and history of gardening, aware that this exalted achievement demonstrates the Cardinal’s unqualified egocentric vision. It’s believed to have taken a half-century to complete these gardens. By blocking out the sounds of other visitors, you’ll imagine the experience of these magnificent surroundings in the late-16th century.

Villa d’Este (Photo: Alice Joyce)

Villa d’Este (Alice Joyce photo)

Villa d’Este

Prey yourself away from the Villa’s overlook, gazing upon the glistening organ fountain – the Fountain of Nature, and you’ll lose touch with modern-day Italy.

Italian Gardens … Amazon.com

Villa d'Este Grotto (Alice Joyce photo)

Villa d’Este (Photo: Alice Joyce)

In moving through the garden’s compelling structure, you’ll revel in the exuberant display of the Hundred Fountains, with its echoing play of water…

…and stand mesmerized before the nymphaeum, and fabled cascades of the Oval Fountain.

Italian Gardens … Books on Amazon.com

September 4th, 2010 | Tags: , , | Category: Historic Gardens, Italy | 2 comments

Brighton, England .. Brilliant Counterpoints

Brighton, England
Brighton Pavilion – Perennial Beds in Spring (Alice Joyce photo)

Much to do in Brighton- a place of brilliant counterpoints.

Constructed at the turn of the 19th century, the ornate presence of the Royal Pavilion stands at the very center of the city. Foodie havens, great shopping, and inviting hotels await your visit.

Best of all for the garden traveler, the South Downs is a year-round destination, drawing you to the iconic settings of Virginia Woolf’s Monk’s house & Garden & the Bloomsbury Group’s ’salon’ … Charleston House.

Lewes – a bustling yet charming town in East Sussex merits exploring.

Brighton Pavilion (Alice Joyce photo)

I, for one, can’t get enough of the characters associated with the Bloomsbury saga, from the exploits of Vita Sackville-West to Vanessa, Clive, Duncan, and their offspring:  Here’s a lovely book by Bloomsbury descendant, Quentin Bell:

CHARLESTON house & garden … on Amazon.com

Tamarisk – Chelsea Physic Garden, London (Photo: Alice Joyce)

And furthermore…

Sir Hans Sloane – Chelsea Physic Garden (Alice Joyce photo)

barely an hour’s ride by train,

London’s Chelsea Physic Garden

…click to visit: Bay Area Tendrils

August 24th, 2010 | Tags: , | Category: England, Historic Gardens | 5 comments

Enchanting! Garden Gallery of Little and Lewis

One of the most engaging garden settings you might hope to encounter:  Little and Lewis Garden Gallery

Turquoise Lotus (Photos Courtesy Little and Lewis)

Traveling in the Pacific Northwest, in the Seattle area? I recommend an enjoyable, short ferry ride to Bainbridge Island, where you’ll find the enchanting gardenscape created by Little and Lewis: Open by appointment

Little and Lewis Garden Gallery

Since my last visit, David and George have sold their original garden. It’s now been two years since they relocated from the exceptional garden created over an eighteen-year span, to begin agnew on the property next door. The new garden – pictured – sits on about a third of an acre in a residential neighborhood on Bainbridge Island, some 30 minutes from the dock in Seattle.

Little and Lewis Water Feature

Akin to the former setting, a lush exoticism characterizes the new garden. Dappled light plays over the garden’s tropical specimens, and strongly architectural plants adorning containers, grouped around a stone-paved courtyard. An 8 and 1/2 foot moss-covered rain tree creates a lyrical plashing of water, while a courtly old Japanese maple presides over the garden’s abundant sculptures placed throughout.

Little and Lewis : Bainbridge Island

Little and Lewis – New Garden

The entire garden exudes the atmosphere of the ancient sites that George and David are drawn to, yet except for the established trees, the garden is a mere 10 months old at this time.

Little and Lewis Garden Gallery – Bainbridge Island, Washington

George and David, partners in Little and Lewis, have collaborated on their unique, color-washed concrete sculptures and installations since 1992. They travel frequently to Mexico, absorbing the light, color and architecture that influences their work.

Their stunningly photogenic works of garden art and horticultural expertise has featured widely in books (you’ll find an entry in my guidebook:  Gardenwalks in the Pacific Northwest – Globe Pequot Press INSIDERS’ Guide) …and has been celebrated in magazines, as well as on television, including Martha Stewart Living and The Victory Garden.

You’ll find in-depth look at the art of Little and Lewis in their best selling, award-winning book: A Garden Gallery: The Plants and Hardscape of Little and Lewis (Timber Press Publisher):  A Garden Gallery available on Amazon.com.

August 18th, 2010 | Tags: , , | Category: Seattle Area | 7 comments - (Comments are closed)
 
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