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Italy

Villa Arvedi: Perfection in an Italian Landscape Garden

Departing Venice on a June morning, we drove on to Verona Province to take in the serene beauty of Villa Arvedi.  An opportunity had presented to tour with the elegant, dignified Signora who resides at the Villa. It is an understatement to say the renowned formal Italian landscape captured my heart and imagination. From the magnificent frescos adorning the interiors to the perfect layout of the parterres, memories of Villa Arvedi will remain with me forever.

Villa Arvedi Landscape  © Alice Joyce

The Villa’s historically resonant setting emerges in Cuzzano, Grezzana, where the Lessini mountains unfold in the distance. There is a grandeur to the property displayed in the meticulous maintenance of the gardens and impressive architecture: One never doubts the attentive concern of present-day owners, the Arvedi family.

Villa Arvedi’s famed parterres demonstrate a highly regarded, refined design aesthetic.

Villa Arvedi Parterre Detail  © Alice Joyce

The delightfully engaging landscape invites visitors to stroll among the intricately shaped and clipped box parterres, the lawn bedecked with roses. The view is breathtaking from the terrace.

Villa Arvedi Trompe L’oeil   © Alice Joyce

Frescos painted by Ludovico Dorigny (1654-1742), Farinati, Fralezza and Santo Prunati adorn the Villa’s first floor and church. Stunning Trompe L’oeil scenes were rendered by  Francesco Bibiena.

Villa Arvedi Chapel  © Alice Joyce

In an interior courtyard, the beautiful Baroque chapel arises.

Villa Arvedi Statuary  © Alice Joyce

Statuary beckons at the gateway.

Villa Arvedi Roses  © Alice Joyce

Select garden tours include Villa Arvedi in their itinerary. Visit the web site to learn about special events at this brilliant historic estate in the Veneto, where travel in the region will be greatly enriched if you can arrange a visit.

Villa Arvedi Central View  © Alice Joyce

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Italy

Valsanzibio .. A Baroque Dream

My Italian sojourn took advantage of the accommodating guidance and transport provided by

The Other Side of Venice – Veneto Tours, with Miriam at the helm.

Valsanzibio Main Allee  © Alice Joyce

We departed Venice early one morning for a day trip to the beautiful countryside of the Veneto, southwest of Padova. The destination:  A dream-like Baroque masterpiece, VALSANZIBIO, its magnificent landscape  traced back to 1669 and the Venetian aristocrat, Zuane Francesco Barbarigo – with a breathtaking layout created by none other than the Vatican architect, Bernini.

Valsanzibio Rainbow Fountain Putto Photo © Alice Joyce

Six generations of the Barbarigo family, with successors Nobile Marco Antonio Michiel, Counts Donà dalle Rose, followed by three generations of Nobili Pizzoni Ardemani – All have nurtured the property’s awe-inspiring landscape architecture, replete with delightful water features around every turn, amid wondrous views and vistas that continue to draw present-day garden lovers from afar, and travelers drawn to Italy’s rich cultural history.

Vista to Hillside  © Alice Joyce

Forty acres in all, the gardens were meant to encompass the theme of “man’s progress towards his own perfectibility or salvation” as the brochure explains.

To this end, statuary by Enrico Marengo adorns a paradise of a plan highlighted by streams and pools, stairways, cascades…

Valsanzibio Water Joke  © Alice Joyce

… and entrancing water ‘jokes.’

Valsanzibio Baroque Rockery  © Alice Joyce

A centerpiece of the landscape is the stunning ‘Water Theatre,’ as viewed from Diana’s Pavilion.

Valsanzibio Water Theater Detail  © Alice Joyce

Giardino Barbarigo Fountain © Alice Joyce

Valsanzibio’s exquisite geometry takes in a vast boxwood maze, preserved by the owners along with the landscape’s fantastical fountains and parkland greenery, restored after the damage incurred by occupation during World War II.

Valsanzibio: Walking the Maze  © Alice Joyce

 

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Botanical Gardens

Vancouver .. VanDusen Botanical Garden

VanDusen Botanical Garden – Vancouver, British Columbia

A city energized by cultural diversity, Vancouver is a superb destination in every way. VanDusen Botanical Garden – one of the city’s gems – is a hilly 55-acre setting that I like to approach on the No. 17 city bus from my downtown hotel. A Spring visit to VanDusen will remain in the minds-eye long after the experience. During the period of late May through early June, cascading golden panicles tumble from archways over the Laburnum Walk in a medley of ground-covering bluebells and alliums.

Late Summer – Canadian Heritage Pond

Boasting a collection of contemporary sculpture, an Elizabethan maze,  and year-round blooming displays, VanDusen Botanical Garden has been invigorated by a new entry area: The Phylllis Bentall Garden, with paved terrace, pool, and mixed borders, invites you to explore VanDusen’s glorious magnolias.

Photos: Courtesy VanDusen Botanical Garden

Maze VanDusen

Month by month the landscape turns heads as Himalayan blue poppies progress to a sea of wildflowers blanketing meadows followed by fiery fall color. Seasonal stars include alliances of heathers, hollies and hellebores. To contemplate VanDusen’s charms, ramble along to the Cypress Pond, Heron Lake, or the restored Korean Pavilion, intricately carved with floral patterning in burnished tones.

Van Dusen Azaleas

The Spring season provides eye-catching swathes of narcissi, advancing to a pathway replete with rhododendrons and scented azaleas. The hedge maze (pictured above) is comprised of 3,000 plants of Thuja occidentalis ‘Fastigiata’ – cedars of a pyramidal form.

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