The Original Outside Water Fountain Designers

Multi-talented people, fountain artists from the 16th to the late 18th century often worked as architects, sculptors, artists, engineers and highly educated scholars all in one person. Leonardo da Vinci, a Renaissance artist, was renowned as a ingenious genius, inventor and scientific master. He carefully reported his examinations in his now much celebrated notebooks about his investigations into the forces of nature and the qualities and movement of water. Early Italian fountain designers altered private villa configurations into ingenious water exhibits full of emblematic meaning and natural charm by combining imagination (this post) with hydraulic and horticultural expertise. Known for his virtuosity in archeology, architecture and garden creations, Pirro Ligorio, the humanist, provided the vision behind the wonders in Tivoli. Well versed in humanistic topics and classical scientific texts, other fountain designers were masterminding the fascinating water marbles, water features and water pranks for the various estates near Florence.