GARDENS IN TUSCANY

The photo exhibition “Gardens in Tuscany”, which consists of 45 pictures of the Italian photograph Massimo Listri,  opened on the 18th of June, at the presence of Her Highness the Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. The exhibition was displayed until the 1st of July in the Hall of Mirrors of Siam Paragon Shopping Complex, in Bangkok.

During the opening ceremony, the Italian Ambassador H.E. Ignazio Di Pace and Khun Chanchai Charuvastr, President of the Siam Paragon Development Co., expressed their gratefulness to Her Highness the Princess Sirindhorn for her attendance and welcomed the exhibition as one of the most remarkable bilateral projects of the Italian Festival 2007.After visiting the exhibition, Her Highness the Princess Maha Sirindorn has warmly appreciated the artwork of Massimo Listri and has invited the Italian photographer to take pictures of the gardens of the Royal Palace.

As well as featuring the beautiful photographs of Massimo Listri, the exhibition also offered an insight into the essence of Italian landscape design, covering gardens from the main periods of Italian history.

As a matter of fact, the Gardens of Tuscany are an important part of Italy’s cultural and artistic heritage and their evolution throughout the centuries has always reflected the ever-changing relationship between man and his natural environment.

Therefore, the different sections of the exhibition focused on: the Renaissance, the Baroque, the Romantic and the Contemporary, outlining the distinctive elements and designs of different periods.

In the fifteenth century, Florence and Tuscany were leading centers of great artistic experimentation, playing host to many artists and architects (such as Brunelleschi, Donatello and Giambologna) who attached a great importance to the observation of nature. As such, the numerous gardens which flourished during the Renaissance were a significant expression of this innovative movement and represented a new relationship between man and his environment, as represented by the wide use of statues in the landscape design of these gardens.

During the seventeenth century Tuscany was strongly influenced by the French Court of Louis XIV. As such, the typical Baroque garden reflected a new taste for grandeur and magnificence as embodied by the so-called ‘ French Style Garden’, which became very popular at that time. The imposing scenery of designs were crowded with spectacular decorative touches, such as a greater variety of statues, water features and types of plants.

By the eighteenth century the dominant influence shifted from France to England. The gardens developed in the Romantic period demonstrated a taste for harmony and geometry with a poetical neoclassical touch. The concept of elegance and beauty expressed through the search for purity and simplicity reached its height at the end of the century and can clearly be seen in the harmony of the gardens designed at that time.

The final section of the exhibition focuses on the gardens of the twentieth century. The contemporary gardens are often inspired by traditional concepts like the Renaissance and the Romanticism, skillfully combined within innovative and modern settings. The use of statues and decoration elements, as well as the introduction of interesting art installations, can be surprising and provoking, but also continues to maintain a tradition of harmonious dialogue with the surrounding landscape.

 

Her Highness The Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Mrs. Helen Di Pace and the Italian photographer Massimo Listri
The Italian First Secretary Sabina Santarossa and Siam Paragon Administrative Staff	The Italian photographer Massimo Listri, Dott.ssa Flavia Farruggio, Mr. Kriengkrai Tantipipop, Ms. Supaluk Ampuj and Mrs. Cristina Spano’