VICTORIAN ERA SPECTACULAR

LOVE OF NATURE

"THE THIRD CONSTITUENT ELEMENT OF THE GOTHIC MIND WAS STATED TO BE NATURALISM: THAT IS TO SAY, THE LOVE OF NATURAL OBJECTS FOR THEIR OWN SAKE, AND THE EFFORT TO REPRESENT THEM FRANKLY, UNCONSTRAINED BY ARTISTICAL LAWS."

- Ruskin

NATURE

The Victorian period gave rise to an extreme love and devotion towards nature. People began to look at nature as their god, so to speak, and this feeling was reflected in their work. To some, this new found love meant a disappearance of God and a deeper worship of that which surrounds them. According to Ruskin, the "Christian workman" felt that upon completion, everything would ultimately work out for the "good"(Ruskin, 713). These artists and architects worked to preserve the "present," whether it be offensive or not. Ruskin felt that the "best art either represents the facts of its own day, or,...expresses them with accessories of the time..."(Ruskin, 713). The Courthouse displayed here in black and white (below), conveys a better feeling of the Gothic present day design, as it combines the softness and the life of nature, along with the disturbed aspects of reality. Soft strands of vines outline various edges of the building which is actually hard to discern in the photos provided. The plantlife that surrounds the building compliments the "free" and "natural" overtones; whether this landscape was planned originally with the construction I am not for certain. This building serves as a wonderful example of this period's desire to naturalize the edifice, and make it a statement of the creators own being.

SAVAGENESS or RUDENESS

LOVE OF CHANGE

LOVE OF NATURE

DISTURBED IMAGINATION

OBSTINACY or RIGIDITY

GENEROSITY

All quotes are taken from author John Ruskin's "The Stones of Venice." (1853)