Simply Baroque

The discovery of the New World in the late 15th and early 16th centuries introduced two contrasting perspectives: one viewing it as an Edenic paradise, while another saw it as a region ripe for exploitation. This dual perception paralleled the rise of the Baroque style in European architecture and garden design, which flourished from the start of the seventeenth century, with Versailles emerging as its quintessential example. The Baroque fervor, characterized by grandeur and symmetry, dominated princely and papal aesthetics until the mid-18th century when it was gradually supplanted by the Picturesque movement. This shift toward naturalistic, irregular designs, exemplified in parks like Stowe and Stourhead, marked a significant aesthetic evolution in garden sensibilities.

Mallgrave, H. F. (2021). Simply Baroque. Building Paradise, 129–149. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003178460-7