DOI Artikel:
Azzi Visentini, Margherita: Around the historiography of Italian gardens: Georgina Masson's contribution; [Rezension]
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.14576#0041
AROUND THE HISTORIOGRAPHY OF ITALIAN CÎARDENS: GEORCHNA MASSON'S CONTRIBUTION
35
7. Villa San Remigio at Verbania
The British-American colony residing around Rome and Tuscany, which had contributed enormously
to the knowledge and revival of the Italian garden, disbanded during the long and dramatic war years. Nev-
ertheless, several important scientific contributions appeared in the early 1940s, from Mario BanTe's //
giardino di Villa Madama (1942), based on a careful study of the drawings by Raphaël and his assistants, to
John Coolidge's article about the Villa Giulia, which examines the complex in light of previously untapped
documents (1943)21.
During the difficult but inspiring reconstruction period, there was renewed interest in Italy's enormously
rich but little-known artistic héritage, which was in poor condition and in which the country proudly sought
its identity, particularly through the villas and their gardens. The post-war rediscovery of Italian villas and
the awareness of the need for appropriate policies to protect and conserve them have traditionally been traced
back to the famous photographie exhibition on the Veneto villas that was organized in Treviso in 1952 by
Giuseppe Mazzotti, who was the director of the provincial Tourist Board at the time. The exhibition then
travelled to a number of European cities and was brought to the United States, and by presenting this incom-
parable historie and artistic legacy it also revealed its pitiable state of decay. As a resuit, efforts were made
to establish an institution responsible for preserving thèse villas and making them known: the Ente per le
Ville Venete, now the Istituto Régionale per le Ville Venete, which was officially founded in 1958, followed
by the Ente Ville Vesuviane in 1-971. The Centro Internazionale di Studi di Architettura Andréa Palladio was
also founded in Vicenza in 1958. The latter has played a fundamental role in critical research into the archi-
21 M. В a fi 1 e, 7 giardini di Villa Madama, Roma 1942; J. С o o lidge, The Villa Giulia: A Study of Central Italian Archi-
tecture in the Mid-Sixteenth Century, "The Art Bulletin" 25 (1943), pp. 177-225. In récent years archivai research has made a vital
contribution to our critical knowledge of Italy's héritage and, in particular, of its villas and their gardens. This is also confirmed by
the discovery of a letter in which Raphaël described his project for the Villa Madama, of which until the mid-1960s there was only
indirect évidence, i.e. it was repeatedly cited by 16lh-century sources. This letter has finally revealed the enormous attention that
was paid to incorporating the complex into the site, becoming an essential part of it, and its intentional ties to classical models,
underscored by the terminology that Raphaël used. It has likewise corroborated the insight of scholars who had examined it pre-
viously, including Masson. P.H. F o ster, Raphaël on the Villa Madama: The Te.xt of a Lost Letter, "Rômisches Jahrbuch fur
Kunstgeschichte" 11 (1967 1968), pp. 307-312; R. Lefevre, Su una Jettera di Rajfaello riguardante Villa Madama, "Studi
Romani" 17 (1969), pp. 425-437.
35
7. Villa San Remigio at Verbania
The British-American colony residing around Rome and Tuscany, which had contributed enormously
to the knowledge and revival of the Italian garden, disbanded during the long and dramatic war years. Nev-
ertheless, several important scientific contributions appeared in the early 1940s, from Mario BanTe's //
giardino di Villa Madama (1942), based on a careful study of the drawings by Raphaël and his assistants, to
John Coolidge's article about the Villa Giulia, which examines the complex in light of previously untapped
documents (1943)21.
During the difficult but inspiring reconstruction period, there was renewed interest in Italy's enormously
rich but little-known artistic héritage, which was in poor condition and in which the country proudly sought
its identity, particularly through the villas and their gardens. The post-war rediscovery of Italian villas and
the awareness of the need for appropriate policies to protect and conserve them have traditionally been traced
back to the famous photographie exhibition on the Veneto villas that was organized in Treviso in 1952 by
Giuseppe Mazzotti, who was the director of the provincial Tourist Board at the time. The exhibition then
travelled to a number of European cities and was brought to the United States, and by presenting this incom-
parable historie and artistic legacy it also revealed its pitiable state of decay. As a resuit, efforts were made
to establish an institution responsible for preserving thèse villas and making them known: the Ente per le
Ville Venete, now the Istituto Régionale per le Ville Venete, which was officially founded in 1958, followed
by the Ente Ville Vesuviane in 1-971. The Centro Internazionale di Studi di Architettura Andréa Palladio was
also founded in Vicenza in 1958. The latter has played a fundamental role in critical research into the archi-
21 M. В a fi 1 e, 7 giardini di Villa Madama, Roma 1942; J. С o o lidge, The Villa Giulia: A Study of Central Italian Archi-
tecture in the Mid-Sixteenth Century, "The Art Bulletin" 25 (1943), pp. 177-225. In récent years archivai research has made a vital
contribution to our critical knowledge of Italy's héritage and, in particular, of its villas and their gardens. This is also confirmed by
the discovery of a letter in which Raphaël described his project for the Villa Madama, of which until the mid-1960s there was only
indirect évidence, i.e. it was repeatedly cited by 16lh-century sources. This letter has finally revealed the enormous attention that
was paid to incorporating the complex into the site, becoming an essential part of it, and its intentional ties to classical models,
underscored by the terminology that Raphaël used. It has likewise corroborated the insight of scholars who had examined it pre-
viously, including Masson. P.H. F o ster, Raphaël on the Villa Madama: The Te.xt of a Lost Letter, "Rômisches Jahrbuch fur
Kunstgeschichte" 11 (1967 1968), pp. 307-312; R. Lefevre, Su una Jettera di Rajfaello riguardante Villa Madama, "Studi
Romani" 17 (1969), pp. 425-437.