In 2015, our family somehow made it to Italy. Opting for more of a chill itinerary, most of our time was spent visiting smaller, countryside towns of the regions of Umbria and Tuscany. It was here that we indulged in life’s simple pleasures — red wine, bread, cheese, gelato. In repetition. Fully satisfied, we headed to Florence to embrace the renowned cultural and art institutions.
The Bobili Gardens are the first, and largest, formal 16th–century Italian Renaissance gardens. Situated on hilly terrain on the outskirts of Florence, they are characterized by an impressive collection of lavish statuaries, long axial avenues, and expansive views to the city.
A variety of spatial qualities, throughout the gardens, impressed and stirred the senses. Emerging from the Pitti Palace into daylight, we ascended the large amphitheater. A sculpted hillside of lawn terraces and paths yields dramatic panoramic views to the city and beyond. A long axial avenue, Viottolone, flanked by statuaries and cypress, is powerfully directional. Secondary paths, narrow in width and flanked with hedges, tightly enclose space on two sides. Statuaries, located at the terminus of paths, are focal points, drawing in the eye. Trained plantings, envelope the sides and overhead planes, amplifying the sense of enclosure along walkways. Mature London Plane trees, tightly spaced, strongly define edges of walkways. Throughout the gardens, views contract and expand as defined spatial edges give way to panoramic views of the city. The formal geometry of the gardens and lofted location lends itself to a theatrical spatial experience, moving the senses.
Arrivederci.
