Paris: Over & Out

Versailles and the Musical Gardens

On Tuesday a small group of us went to Versailles. I had never been but I had studied the gardens this past spring semester with Professor Butler.

Versailles architecture is of the Rococo period with the gardens being classified as Picturesque. The interior of the building is very elaborate and glamorous was guilded designs on the walls which curved and swirled in a very romantic way. Picturesque gardens are gardens which are manipulated by man and seem very Rococo in themes and arrangements. Many picturesque gardens include topiaries.

Rococo art took place in the early and mid part of the 18th century. It is primarily based/associated with Austria, Germany, and France, but is still considered an international style as other cultures dabbled in it. The word Rococo comes from the French word for shell (rocaille) due to the shell-like curves which run throughout their art and architecture. More-so, the themes of this style are reminiscent of nature and motifs inspired by nature. In comparison to its predecessor style, Baroque, it is much more light-hearted with flirty themes and lighter hues. Many of the themes run back to Greek, and Roman myths.

Inside Versailles there were many paintings, many of the Rococo period. One of the paintings which I came across in which I studied was Louis XIV (1638-1715), by Hyacinthe Riguad in 1701. This painting is important since it was done so close to his death, and the fact that with Louis XIV’s death in 1715, the aristocratic era ended.

The Pantheon

Freshman year at RWU (2008) I was in a couple of construction management classes in which I ended up studying and writing a paper on the construction and different techniques about the Pantheon. Later Sophomore year (2009) I took an art history course in which I studied the aesthetics and architectural design of the Roman structure.

The Pantheon which we saw was not the one the Romans built but was very similar. However there were a few differences in which I noticed.

The Roman Pantheon (built in 120 CE by emperor Hadrien) was built to be a temple to revere and worship all the gods.

What many architects find fascinating about the structure is that it was structural built to be able to fit a perfect sphere in which the dome would be the top. (The sphere’s diameter measures 144 ft. in comparison to the portico’s height of 59 ft.) On the top of this dome is an opening called an oculous. (The oculous was built so that the gods could look down upon their worshippers). This technique allows light to shine through and rain to wash the floors. (The architect slanted the marble floors so that when it rained, the water would wash the floors clean of any dirt). The Pantheon employed the technique of coffers on the ceiling to make the dome’s weight lighter so it would not collapse.

The Pantheon in which we saw did not honor all the gods, but rather to honor and commemorate the city and humanities great achievements. Furthermore, this Pantheon did not have a dome which could theoretically become a perfect sphere. This dome was much more oval and pill shaped. At the top of this dome, unlike the Roman Pantheon, there was no oculous, instead, it was illuminated by light from windows in the dome.