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second half of the eighteenth century: English gardens. Italian ings which nodded to the trend of the moment, exoticism, fol- The garden of Villa Durazzo Pallavicini, in Genoa.
gardens show man’s influence; English gardens, instead, hide lowing a pathway that some believe was tied to Freemasonry.
their artificiality and nature is given a free hand to reclaim its A late example of Italian gardens can be found at Venaria Re-
spaces. Queen Maria Carolina of Austria summoned the bota- ale: all that remains of the original layout are the drawings that
nist Andrew John Graefer to Caserta; in 1786, he was entrust- show three terraces joined by spectacular stairways and imposing
ed with a part of the park opposite the baroque portion and the fountains. The design was reinstituted in 2007, when restoration
vegetation prevails. began on the Savoy palace, which had been abandoned for decades,
Romantic gardens were supposed to reflect emotion rather and on the gardens, which Napoleon had transformed into a parade
than sumptuousness. They were a nineteenth century evolution ground. Today, we can finally admire the majesty of the original
of the English garden, and the park of Villa Durazzo-Pallavicini, project, even if it will take a few more years before we can admire
created by Michele Canzio, represents one of its highest expres- the final result. Not by chance, when new palazzi were being de-
sions: the garden is a setting full of symbolic meaning, where the signed, they always started with the garden, so that when construc-
flora (holm oaks, bay trees, palm trees, and other exotic plants) tion work was completed, a new, precious space was ready to refresh
blend with Neoclassical and neo-Gothic architecture, or build- the eyes and the soul.

14 Landscaping Protagonist