England of the 18th century underwent many fundamental social, political, and cultural changes which also contributed to the transformation of the country’s landscape. The industrial revolution and exploitation of colonies allowed the creation of a vast class of wealthy people who supported the new tendencies in architecture and landscape design. Many prominent architects promoted new style in landscape design characterized by a non-systematic approach to the construction of parks and focusing on structuring gardens through the combination of separate completed views thematically united among each other. Lancelot Capability Brown was one of the most famous representatives of this new direction in landscape architecture. Brown chose the profession of a gardener in his youth and refined his skills until he reached the very peak of mastership (Brown and Williamson 87). Impeccable skills, well-developed taste, and artistic approach made his professional principles the pillars of the English style in landscape design.
Capability Brown believed that a garden can be created by virtue of poetic feelings and eyes of an artist (Shultnan 17). Consistently with this perspective, he always proceeded his work from the examination of existing natural landscapes explaining it by the idea that every territory hides some implicit capabilities which are to be revealed and emphasized. Brown never transformed a landscape like the French craftsmen did in their regular parks, but only favorably highlighted its benefits and retouched potential flaws. This basic principle of work became the architect’s trademark that provided him with a good income and the honorary name of ‘Capability’ Brown (“Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown” par. 2).
The architect has introduced many innovative techniques which became universally applicable to the design of both small and large territories. For example, Brown formulated the rule of landscape structuring which states that a landscape should be constructed in a way that its foreground could be drawn up in details, the middle distance would be outlined more vaguely, with larger strokes; and the background would remain untouched (Brown 95). Capability Brown treated the natural qualities of a territory with particular care. If he found a beautiful piece, he deliberately changed the track route to include this natural object into his landscape garden. Meandering park lanes can be regarded as another feature of Brown’s work. He considered straight tracks unnatural and did not consider them of any value. The architect often endowed his park lanes with bizarre twists to surprise viewers with unexpectedly revealing beautiful outlooks (Brown 176).
Brown liked to work with water it often became the central element of his landscapes (Brown 83). For example, Stowe Landscape Gardens are considered one of best Brown’s work characterized by a great variety of scenery changes based on the rhythmic impression increase (e.g. entrance to the palace through the Grand alley leading from the south and then through a series of park landscapes leading to the north facade), gradual scenery unfolding (inclusion of architectural objects), or variations on a particular theme (outlook on the palace through the Corinthian Arch) (McGillivray par. 3). Brown’s use of water at Stowe Gardens is also associated with multiple solutions – it serves as a light and open mirror in front of the palace, or closed and gradually approaching forest stream, or takes the shape of cascades decorated with grottos and bridges.
Brown’s landscapes represent the delicately thought out and masterfully executed subordination and unity of spatial, natural elements, and compositional components scenes. These inherent features of Brown’s works make them outstand among all masterpieces of landscape design. His artistic approach allowed the creation of gardens in which the boundary between a designed landscape and wild nature vanished letting viewers get the supreme aesthetic pleasure and leaving a long-lasting taste of sublimity.
Works Cited
Brown, David, and Tom Williamson. Lancelot Brown and the Capability Men: Landscape Revolution in Eighteenth-century England, London, UK: Reaktion Books, 2016. Print.
McGillivray, Glen. “Nature Transformed: English Landscape Gardens and Theatrum Mundi.” M/C Journal 19.4 (2016). Web.
Shultnan, Nicola. “The Genius Of The Place.” New Criterion 35.2 (2016): 16-21. Academic Search Complete. Web.
Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown. (2016). Web.