This elegant new volume combines Edith Wharton's sensual prose tour of Italy's most gorgeous gardens with stunning photographs that capture these lush spaces in all their past, present, and enduringly haunting beauty. Wharton devotees, gardeners, and Italophiles alike will delight in following in the writer's turn-of-the-century footsteps. 30 historical bandw photos. 180 modern color photos.

The gardens of the Italian Lakes are a favourite destination for garden lovers and groups. The gardens around Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, in the far north of Italy, are admired throughout the world for their beauty and variety in a magnificent natural location. This book sets out to become the standard work on these gardens as there is nothing of this kind on the market at the moment. It will appeal both to the specialist and enthusiast preparing for a visit. The common factor for all these gardens is their setting in this landscape of exceptional scenery. Lake Como is a deep lake hemmed in like a fjord by towering mountains. Lake Maggiore has more the character of an inland sea, with ferries crossing to the famous island gardens for an afternoon in another world. Both lakes are lined with the towers, villas and grand hotels that speak of a complex history including key events in Italy's struggle to achieve nationhood, inspiration for a string of illustrious writers and composers, and a long line of distinguished visitors. The gardens include: Villa Melzi, Bellagio: an early 19th-century romantic park on the lake shore Villa Carlotta, Cadenabbia: a terraced 17th-century property with woodland Villa del Balbianello, Lenno: a famously picturesque loggia Villa D'Este, Cernobbio: a 16th-century cascade garden with royal connections Villa Cicogna Mozzoni, Bisuschio: an intact 16th-century villa garden Villa Della Porta Bozzolo, Casalzuigno: a rural baroque garden Isola Bella, Stresa: a well-known island garden Isola Madre, Stresa: an island retreat of flowers and birds Villa San Remigio, Pallanza: an Edwardian garden made by two lovers Villa Taranto, Pallanza: one of the world's great woodland gardens

A stunning collection of photographs celebrating the excellence of the Italian Renaissance period through palaces and gardens built between the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The book illustrates nine locations of extraordinary artistic and architectural interest, conceived by prominent Italian families and dynasties as urban villas or country houses centered around the pursuit of entertainment and leisure. These lavishly decorated and frescoed palaces are adorned with handcrafted furniture and works of art and surrounded by gardens that retain their original layout to this day--a very rare feature. An historical text introduces each property, giving an overview of its origins. The villas have been specially photographed for this book by Dario Fusaro, with views of both the palace interiors and their grounds, as well as the gardens, glimpses of the halls, details of the furnishings, and a focus on the frescoes, where still preserved. Explanatory text offers insights on the most interesting frescoes, such as those of Veronese at Villa Barbaro. For the first time, Fusaro also employs a drone with the purpose of capturing the architectural structure and elements of each Italian Renaissance garden, from above and as a whole. This all-access volume is essential for fans and readers interested in Italian art, for those who love to travel through Italy in search of places of artistic interest, and for those seeking out green tourist destinations.

Since the earliest Roman settlements, Italians have been expertly cultivating their land into beautiful and creative displays of nature, where terraces and walkways, plants and flowers, water and statuary are combined to provide a unique ad inspiring setting. The Italian garden has greatly evolved throughout the ages, taking on different forms, favoring different plants, and serving different purposes. Early Italian gardens made use of citrus, still regarded as an essential element for its bright fruit and shiny leaves. The ancient art of the topiary was revived in the Renaissance for its drama and elegance, and the refined parterre was developed to spread forth from the great palazzos and provide a dramatic view from their upper stories. Later, in the nineteenth century, the influence of the English garden took hold, with its meandering paths, asymmetrical lakes, and blossoming trees. In "Italian Gardens, author Judith Wade explores more than five hundred years of this tradition, discussing each of these developments and transporting the reader to thirty-seven of the most captivating gardens of Italy. Eleven regions are visited, from Lombardy and Piedmont in the north, to the island of Sicily in the south. Both small and grandiose, historic and contemporary gardens are featured. Travel with Wade to the aristocratic Villa Favorita in Lugano, where an avenue of cypresses welcomes those who approach; the English-style park of Villa Novare Bertani in Verona, with its seventeenth-century wine cellar; the eighteenth-century Avenue of the Camelias at Lucca's Villa Reale, where the American artist John Singer Sargent painted; and great examples of contemporary Italian landscapes, likeLa Mortella in Naples, which boasts more than eight hundred species of rare plants. As "living works of art" these changing displays of nature grow and bloom with the seasons. Smell the roses and lavender, feel the light

Focuses on selected villas and gardens in France and Italy from 1500 1700.