Le Fontane del Giardino Estense in Tivoli con li Loro Prospetti, e Vedute della Cascata del Fiume Aniene 1691

Editor: Okay, so this print is called "Le Fontane del Giardino Estense in Tivoli con li Loro Prospetti, e Vedute della Cascata del Fiume Aniene," made in 1691 by Giovanni Francesco Venturini. It's an engraving of a garden, held at The Met. I’m struck by how meticulously everything is rendered; almost dreamlike with detail, but the mood feels very formal. What do you make of this piece? Curator: Oh, it's like stepping into a perfectly staged Baroque play, isn’t it? Imagine the echoes of fountains mingling with the murmur of conversation and rustling leaves. The architecture is quite imposing as are the meticulously placed plants and the tiny figures within it all. For me, there's this delicate balance between the human attempt to control nature, to formalize and design it, with nature's own unruly wildness. It seems very much in line with the Renaissance project of re-shaping and studying nature, what do you think about this contrast? Editor: I can see that. There's the architecture as opposed to the garden itself, where they attempt to 'domesticate' nature and create a certain order that isn't quite natural. I didn’t necessarily notice that contrast before! Curator: Yes! And there’s a theatrical element, with the viewer placed at the foot of the "stage", the gardens presented to us almost as if to provoke some type of emotion… Think about the grand avenues in Versailles, those were designed to inspire Awe in its visitors, and reinforce the political control, too. What do you get from these compositions? Editor: I hadn't really thought about how orchestrated those landscape designs are, either from Venturini's perspective, or from that of landscape artists elsewhere. Now I want to explore other artists that rendered architectural landscape in the same period. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Curator: My pleasure! It’s these little time portals that make art history such a joy, don't you think?