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Issue 25 HISTORIC GARDENS Review

The city of Trogir, the Tragurion of the Greeks,founded in the 3rd century BC, lies on theAdriatic coast of Croatia, on an islet between themainland and the island of Čiovo. Con sidered

one of the best preserved Romanesque and Gothic cities ofcentral Europe, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Romantic ReformBy Ana Šverko

Nature, science, profit and beauty were the elements all placed at the heart of an agricultural park in Croatia.

Near to the stone bridge that joins the city to themainland is the agricultural park of the Garagnin family, awealthy trading and later aristocratic dynasty which arrivedin Trogir from Venice at the end of the 16th century. In about1800 the Garagnins initiated extensive plans, including aneo-Palladian villa, for their estate at Divulje, 4km (2½ miles)to the east of Trogir, as well as planning the modernisationof their palace in Trogir and its surroundings. Today, thepalace, which lies on the other side of the bridge from thepark, alongside the northern city gate, houses the TrogirMunicipal Museum, in which most of the Garagninarchives are kept, including a fine library.

Opposite the main building, the Garagnins created abotanical garden, in effect a three-dimensional plantcatalogue, which successfully combined the seeminglyincompatible – the ambience of a pleasure garden with apractical farm – as well as providing a setting for ancientstone fragments and showcasing their new architecture.

A key role in putting the garden into order was taken bythe owner, Gian Luca Garagnin (1764-1841). While still ayoung man, this *physiocrat, agronomist and economistbecame a prominent member of all the economic academiesin the region of Dalmatiaand of many similar, mainlyItalian, learned societies. Healso wrote scientific studiesbased on farming economyand practice at that time, andassociated with many of themost distinguished scientistsof the day, with some ofwhom he maintained alively correspondence.

Below: A portrait of Gian LucaGaragnin. Left: An 1830 map of Trogir,showing the Garagnin estate.

* For an article about anotherpark based on physiocratic principles see ‘To Frame a Ruin’ in HGR 24.

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The garden sat in between the family residence and themodel farm at Divulje. Employing proficient Italiangardeners, it belonged on one hand to the opulent urbanpalace with Garagnin’s theoretical base (the studiolo with itsextensive library, where he did his creative work and studieddocuments related to horticulture), and on the other to themini family farm, intended for the practice of physiocraticeconomic ideas, which viewed farming as the essence ofdevelopment and believed that the laws of nature governedboth economic and social behaviour.

What made the practical plantations of Garagnin’s estateexceptional were its æsthetic surroundings. The fields werenot divided by the usual fences, but by trees and flowers;and the paths were broad, laid down to grass or gravelled,and got broader at key points. In the centre of the gardenwas an elegant area with a noble casinetto di delizia, abuilding meant for the proprietor’s enjoyment, located inthe centre of the garden alongside an elegant orangery.

This is where elements of English landscape gardeningcan be seen in Croatia for the first time, particularly in thewinding paths in the northern part of the garden, in themeadows, the rare and precious trees, and the artificialmounds. If the mounds were there to make the compositionmore picturesque, they also played a practical role inprotecting the orangery, while also containing the ice house,in which food and drink were kept in the summer months.

The Garagnins also decorated their garden with ancientmonuments found during archaeological excavations in thenearby Roman metropolis of Salona. In 1805, Gian LucaGaragnin ran the excavations himself: well-informed aboutAntiquity, he was actually appointed the first conservatorin Dalmatia.

These included Luigi Mabil, who was one of the first toinitiate Italy into the changing spirit of garden design;Vincenzo Dandolo, chemist, pharmacist, and civil governorof Dalmatia during French rule; Dominique-Vivant Denon,first director of the Louvre, and Francesco Aglietti, poet,scholar, physician and friend of the sculptor Canova, whowas described by the poet Lord Byron as “the best physician,not only in Venice, but in Italy”.

The state of Dalmatian agriculture at that time is shownin Garagnin’s book Riflessioni economico-politiche sopra laDalmazia¸ published in 1806 and the best-informeddiscussion of the region’s economy in the early 19th century.He described the problems affecting agriculture in thisbackward but naturally rich and favourably located area,analysed their causes, and suggested measures which mightimprove the situation, from the education of the peasantryand legal reforms to visions of the re-organisation andmodernisation of farming as the basis for a strong economy.

On his own estate, Garagnin introduced plants andanimals which he hoped to see spread throughout Dalmatia.

Lists ofgarden plantsfrom 1828-9include some350 species.Along withgrape vinesand olives(the mostimportanteconomic

plants of the Croatian coastal region) Garagnin raisedlegumes and other vegetables that had not so far beengrown there, such as the eggplant or aubergine, zucchini orcourgettes, watermelon and tomatoes; root vegetables such asswedes, beetroot, potatoes, and leafy greens including broccoli,lettuce, and wild cabbage, as well as Chinese spinach.

Citrus trees, such as lemons and bitter oranges, also hadtheir place in the garden, and in evidence, too, were stonefruit trees like the plum, sour cherry and apricot, as well asnut trees, such as the English walnut and the Eastern Blackwalnut. There were also small ornamental trees and shrubs:the Japanese Pagoda tree (Sophora japonica), for example,and the Jerusalem cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum), as wellas several kinds of aromatic and medicinal herbs. In addition,the estate grew certain plants commercially for use in thetextile industries where Garagnin planned improvements:indigofera (Indigofera caerulea), safflower (Carthamustinctorius), several species of mulberry (Morus alba etc.),hemp (Cannabis sativa), and flax (Linum usitatissimum).

The Garagnins also concerned themselves with otheraspects of agricultural practice, crossing Merino sheep withlocal breeds to raise the quality of the wool as well asplanning and erecting model farm buildings.

Above: The garden in about 1900.

Right: Selva’s design for the western entrance of the orangery.


Issue 25 HISTORIC GARDENS Review

The garden was the practical laboratory for Gian LucaGaragnin’s scientific work rather than a mere botanicalcollection. Founded on experiment and the cultivation ofnew plants, it was complemented by plant catalogues andherbaria, as well as by records of the income from the salesof garden produce. How well he worked out the plan of theplantations is shown by surviving drawings which illustratethe degree of continuity in the scheme.

Although private, it was open to his own numerous guests.Visitors included Marshal Marmont, Emperor Franz Iaccompanied by the botanist Franz von Portenschlag-Ledermayer, Friedrich August, King of Saxony, with thebotanist Bartolomeo Biasoletto, Archduke Maximilian with

the Bourbon princes,and the governor ofDalmatia, Ludwig vonWelden. Many of themtook seeds and cuttingshome from the gardenand this exchange ofplants, coupled withthe communicationwith experts seen in

Garagnin’s correspondence, support the view that the gardencan be seen as the first private botanical garden in Croatia.

For Gian Luca Garagnin, as an agronomist, experimentwas a challenge, while the improvement of agriculture was hisreal calling. For him, as an archaeologist and conservator,the stone monuments were not merely nostalgic symbols;for such a connoisseur of contemporary art andarchitecture, the æsthetic element was extremely important.

The books Garagnin refers to in his notes provide aninsight into his conception of garden design and how thefamily estate was laid out. These include Observations onModern Gardening by Thomas Whately (1770); Adissertation on oriental gardening by William Chambers(1772); Essai sur les Jardins by Claude-Henri Watelet(1774); Théorie des Jardins by Jean-Marie Morel (1776);Hirschfeld’s Théorie de l’Art des Jardins (1779-85); andHorace Walpole’s Essay on Modern Gardening (1784).

Reading these books, as Garagnin once did, shows hisknowledge of garden history and of the debate about gardendesign as a liberal art. They contain descriptions of differentplaces and how they change according to the season; theyemphasise the role of the proprietor, and give exhaustivetheoretical and practical instructions about giving shape to agarden, a park or a farm with regard to the character of theregion, climate and location.

In Whately we find chapters devoted to farms, parks,gardens and areas for horse riding, with descriptions ofspecific examples; and so we know how these elements were

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Left: An early 19th century plan of the garden by GiovanniMiotto, of Padua, theGaragnins’ surveyor and gardener.

Photographs taken in the Garagnin garden in 1954 show (above left) an ancient altar and (above right) an antique sculpture, both brought fromSalona, capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia.


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Romantic Reform

perceived at the time the Garagnin estate was created.Whately drew parallels between the shaping of garden andpark, and of garden and farm. A garden and a park oftenhave no clear border, and, with subtle gradations, can bepart of the same whole, while the shaping of a garden andthat of a farm are essentially different. The purpose of thefirst is pleasure, the second profit.

Yet in the same book we come upon the ferme ornée,which combines these two extremes of landscapecultivation. In his reading, Garagnin became acquaintedwith the ornamented or embellished farm, a type broughtin by the garden planner, Stephen Switzer (1682-1745),better known as a writer on the topic. Switzer highlightedthe beauty of vegetables and went on to define the way inwhich a whole estate could be turned into a kind of garden.

This combination of utility and the new landscapeæsthetic, employed in the design of many properties inEngland in the 18th century, was unknown in Croatia, andseldom used even in Italy. The æsthetic and philosophicideal of the English garden, which was modelled onlandscape as distinct from drawing on architecture, as wastypical of the Italian and French garden, spread in Italy onlyat the end of the 18th century. In his garden, Garagninaimed at composition of farm crops in surroundings ofhorticultural and architectural decoration. In Whately andWatelet we find descriptions of the embellished farm thatresembles an image of Arcadia, where human harmony andthe perfection of nature meet. These authors are also quotedby Hirschfeld, and, in one of his letters to his architect,Garagnin refers to them as a possible source of a model forthe casinetto.

For his architect he had chosen Giannantonio Selva(1751-1819), professor at the Venetian Academy of FineArts, who had designed the Public Gardens at Castello(where the Venice Biennale now takes place) and the LaFenice theatre in Venice, and was in charge of the masterplan for the city during the time of Napoleonic rule there.Garagnin and Selva probably got to know each other in the

salotto letterario of Countess Teotochi-Albrizzi, the Venetianequivalent to Mme de Staël’s salon in Paris, and it is likelythat Garagnin became acquainted with contemporary ideasabout garden design in the intellectual environment of thecountess’s salon.

Selva drew up many plans for Garagnin, although theonly part of the garden that was entirely designed by him,

Below: Gian Luca Garagnin-Fanfogna (1851-1902), Gian LucaGaragnin’s grandson, in front of the casinetto.

Two of Selva’s designs for the interior of the casinetto: the northern wall (above left) and the southern room (above right).


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Garagnin-Fanfogna Park, the name by which it is knowntoday – when, completely neglected, it is fast disappearing.

Over the course of time this work of the Age ofEnlightenment has unfortunately been almost lost, but itcould probably be reconstructed to provide important pointsof reference for Croatian horticultural, agricultural andarchitectural history. The contours of the garden are stillvisible, and more research into its former appearance andsignificance would enable us to get a little closer to itsoriginal essence for the purpose of future restoration.

Understanding the original character ofGaragnin’s park could be a spur for itsrevitalisation. Today it is the property of thecity of Trogir and perhaps the best purposefor the site would be educational, with afocus on teaching the importance ofpreserving natural heritage. Throughworking with experts and volunteers,children could learn about cultivating

vegetables, pruning fruit trees, collecting medicinal herbs,and could familiarise themselves with botany.

The extensive documentation that has been preserveddoes allow such reconstruction of the garden, itsarchitectural features and its decoration. The advanced ideasof the past could then be followed by those of today:organic food and biodynamic cultivation. A shop sellinggarden produce would also go some way towards enablingthe project to be self-sustaining. The reconstructed farmbuildings and casinetto di delizia would provide space forhospitality as well as for cultural and artistic events. Theagricultural park, the garden of all the citizens of Trogir,might, as if in a new spirit, reunite utility and pleasure.

Ana Šverko is a conservation architect working in theMinistry of Culture in Split, Croatia. She holds a degreefrom the University of Zagreb, Croatia, and a Masters inUrban Design from the University of California, Berkeley,USA. Her interests include 18th-19th century architectureand gardens, and the regeneration of historic centres.Thanks to the Trogir Municipal Museum, the Croatian StateArchives in Split, and the Photo Archives of the ConservationDept in Split for permission to reproduce illustrations.

Romantic Reform

from the shaping of the volume to interior decoration, wasthe garden casinetto. (The set of drawings for the internaldecoration of the casinetto are one of the few extant interiordesigns by Selva.) As with the ancient stone fragments setout in the garden, the aim was to use the decoration in theinterior of the casinetto to create the atmosphere of amuseum. Selva worked in the spirit of Romantic Classicismwhich brought together feeling for the beauty of nature, andfor the picturesque potential of architecture andarchaeology, within an elegant neo-Grecian style.

Selva also had an impact on theGaragnins’ garden itself. On a journey toEngland he had visited many gardens, amongothers the property of the poet WilliamShenstone, The Leasowes, which in his diaryhe describes as orna ferma, a ferme ornée. Hefound the art in it to lie in the recognition ofplaces that were so beautiful as to need nomodification, only emphasis. In such alandscape it was enough to place vases, resting places andinscriptions to sharpen even further the natural feelingscreated by such scenes. Selva was a representative of acompromise approach, between the landscape and theformal garden, characteristic of Italy in the Enlightenment,a kind of architectural equivalent to the writing of UgoFoscolo, which achieved a balance between Classicism and Romanticism.

The Garagnin garden cannot be considered an exampleof a ferme ornée because it was much more a park intowhich farming elements were introduced than vice versa.But knowledge of this ideal undoubtedly affected Garagninin the design of his agricultural park, a miniature that wasbalanced in several ways. Gian Luca Garagnin recognisedthe spirit of the place in his garden. In its architecture heaimed, as he says in one of his letters to Selva, at “a refinedillusion of rusticity”.

Maps of Trogir from the first half of the 19th centuryshow that most of what was planned had been achieved bythen. But after Gian Luca Garagnin’s time, when he wassucceeded by the Garagnin-Fanfogna family, the characterof the park overpowered all the other values, and thepractical plantations faded. The garden became the

The garden today: the park in its current state of neglect (above left), and (top right) a view to the ruins of the casinetto di delizia.

“Understanding theoriginal character of Garagnin’s park couldbe the spur for itsrevitalisation”


Documents

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