Golden Treasures Real Estate

Frescoes and Ceiling Artwork in Luxury Villas Essay: A Tuscan villa masterpiece in the Dominican Republic

Edward Rivas 11/14/2011

After a visit to one of the most beautiful luxury villas we list for sale in the Dominican Republic, we discovered a treasure trove of fine neoclassical art in its architecture and decoration, so we decided to portray here a sample of its frescoes and ceiling art. At the same time, we add some background information regarding the fresco painting technique and other historical facts.

The history of fresco painting is closely related to, and a reflection of, the history of art generally. Fresco, meaning fresh in Italian, is a form of mural painting in which earth pigments are applied directly to wet lime plaster. The first fresco-type paintings date back to no less than 30,000 years ago with the paintings created in the Chauvet cave in France. Some 15,000 years ago frescoes were created in other caves in Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain.

The unicorn panel at the caves of Lascaux, France, is one of the oldest forms of frescoes, dating back 15,000 years.

Fresco-mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance. Declining in popularity, they enjoyed something of a revival in the 20th century.

These early examples of fresco painting are testimony of the long and varied history of this art form. The early frescoes, painted on the limestone walls of the caves, contained remarkably expressive and realistic figures of horses, bison, bears, lions, mammoths, and rhinoceroses, which continue to fascinate researchers and art historians. By 1500 BC the techniques of fresco painting evolved to painting on wet plaster, allowing more flexibility in the use and location of frescoes for decorative purposes.

The earliest known examples of such frescoes around 1500 BC are to be found on the island of Crete in Greece. The most famous of these, The Toreador, depicts a sacred ceremony in which individuals jump over the backs of large bulls. While some similar frescoes have been found in other locations around the Mediterranean basin, particularly in Morocco, their origins are subject to speculation.

Some art historians believe that fresco artists from Crete may have been sent to Morocco as part of a trade exchange, a possibility which raises to the fore the importance of this art form within the society of the times. Frescoes were also painted in ancient Greece, but few of these works have survived. In southern Italy, at Paestum, which was a Greek colony, a tomb containing frescoes dating back to 470 BC was discovered. These frescoes depict scenes of the life and society of ancient Greece, and constitute valuable historical testimonials.

The creation by Caravaggio is the most famous fresco in the Sistine Chapel (circa 1511).

The Technique: Buon fresco technique consists of painting in pigment mixed with water on a thin layer of wet, fresh (hence the name) lime mortar or plaster, for which the Italian word for plaster, intonaco, is used. Because of the chemical makeup of the plaster, a binder is not required, as the pigment mixed solely with the water will sink into the intonaco, which itself becomes the medium holding the pigment. The pigment is absorbed by the wet plaster; after a number of hours, the plaster dries and reacts with the air: it is this chemical reaction which fixes the pigment particles in the plaster. One of the first painters in the post-classical period to use this technique was the Isaac Master in the Upper Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi.

This fresco is painted on a suite ceiling of the US$6.0 mm Tuscan villa spc2520 in the Dominican Republic.

A secco painting, in contrast, is done on dry plaster (secco is "dry" in Italian). The pigments thus require a binding medium, such as egg (tempera), glue or oil to attach the pigment to the wall. It is important to distinguish between a secco work done on top of buon

fresco, which according to most authorities was in fact standard from the Middle Ages onwards, and work done entirely a secco on a blank wall. Generally, buon fresco works are more durable than any a secco work added on top of them, because a secco work lasts

better with a roughened plaster surface, whilst true fresco should have a smooth one.

Close up of the fresco showing intricate details and marble effects in this neoclassical piece of art.

Frescoes were also painted in ancient Greece, but few of these works have survived. In southern Italy, at Paestum, which was a Greek colony of the Magna Graecia, a tomb containing frescoes dating back to 470 BC, the so called Tomb of the Diver was discovered on June 1968. These frescoes depict scenes of the life and society of ancient Greece, and constitute valuable historical testimonials. One shows a group of men reclining at a symposium while another shows a young man diving into the sea.

Roman wall paintings, such as those at the magnificent Villa dei Misteri (1st century B.C.) in the ruins of Pompeii, and others at Herculaneum, were completed in buon fresco. Late Roman Empire (Christian) 1st-2nd century frescoes were found in catacombs beneath Rome and Byzantine Icons were also found in Cyprus, Crete, Ephesus, Cappadocia and Antioch. Roman frescoes were done by the artist painting the artwork on the still damp plaster of the wall, so that the painting is part of the wall, actually colored plaster.

In the first century the Roman Empire controls many cities, but none in a more beautiful setting than the cities and towns lining the Bay of Naples. On the 24th of August, 79 A.D., volcanic ash spews from Mt. Vesuvius. Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum disappear from the face of the earth. Gradually grass and vines cover the land where the towns stood. The local people eventually forget even the name of the buried towns.

The villa`s atrium has two frescoes depicting a scene in the Italian coast (left one seen here).

Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1738 and Pompeii in 1748. By the mid-eighteenth century, when scholars made the journey to Naples and reported on the findings, the imagination of Europe was ignited. Suddenly, the classical world was in vogue. Philosophy, art, architecture, literature, and even fashion drew upon the discoveries of Pompeii and Herculaneum for inspiration; the neoclassical movement was under way.

A closer look at the wall framed fresco in the villa featured in Golden Treasures Cabrera listings.

Today, many luxury villas and homes are decorated with neoclassical representations that use similar techniques, some as faithful as the old masters. In this particular villa, a combination of vaulted ceilings and trompe l`oeil frescoes reflects the owner`s good taste.

The photo below shows the ceiling of the grand entrance of the Tuscan villa, depicting vines tied to lace in a very harmonious design that according to the owner “it has fooled more than one butterfly into thinking it`s real”.

Buon frescoes are difficult to create because of the deadline associated with the drying plaster. Generally, a layer of plaster will require ten to twelve hours to dry; ideally, an artist would begin to paint after one hour and continue until two hours before the drying time—giving seven to nine hours working time. Once a giornata is dried, no more buon fresco can be done, and the unpainted intonaco must be removed with a tool before starting again the next day. If mistakes have been made, it may also be necessary to remove the whole intonaco for that area—or to change them later à secco.

The ceiling in the second floor master suite of the villa feels like a Renaissance masterpiece.

A technique as seen in the popular frescoes of Michelangelo and Raphael is to actually scrape into certain areas of the plaster while still wet to increase the illusion of depth and to accent certain areas over others. The eyes of the people of the School of Athens are

sunken-in using this technique which causes the eyes to seem deeper and more pensive. Michelangelo used this technique as part of his trademark 'outlining' of his central figures within his frescoes. In a wall-sized fresco, there may be ten to twenty or even more giornate, or separate areas of plaster. After centuries, these giornate (originally, nearly invisible) have sometimes become visible, and in many large-scale frescoes, these divisions may be seen from the ground. Additionally, the border between giornate was often covered by à secco painting, which has since fallen off. For wholly à secco work, the intonaco is laid with a rougher finish, allowed to dry completely and then usually given a key by rubbing with sand. The painter then proceeds much as he would on a canvas or wood panel.

The ceiling of the great room of the villa

Trompe L`oeil

With the superior understanding of perspective drawing achieved in the Renaissance, Italian painters of the late Quattrocento such as Andrea Mantegna (1431–1506) and Melozzo da Forlì (1438–1494), began painting illusionistic ceiling paintings, generally in fresco, that employed perspective and techniques such as foreshortening in order to give the impression of greater space to the viewer below. Although the phrase has its origin in the Baroque period, when it refers to perspectival illusionism, use of trompe-l'œil dates back much further. It was (and is) often employed in murals.

A Trompe-l'œil reproduction of the original Pisa tower ceiling in a guest suite

Aerial view of the villa with Doric columns, arched thresholds, and free form swimming pool.

About the villa: Perched atop a cliff in a very exclusive gated villa residential in Cabrera ( North coast of the Dominican Republic ) this is one of the best villas in the whole Caribbean region, let alone this island. This Italian-style masterpiece has 8 suites, 10 bathrooms, free form swimming pool facing the ocean, gazebo, wrap around verandas framed by Tuscan-style columns and high end luxury finish in every corner.

It features ensuite bedrooms, full gourmet kitchen staffed with chef and butlers, terraces, fitness center, pool tables, top class audio and video system, hand painted ceilings and other custom made game tables. Services and Amenities: Massage, Spa Services, Scenic Views, Spa on Property, Private Pool, Satellite TV, CD/DVD Library, Video Games, Wireless Internet.

Bibliography:

www.italianfrescoes.com

www.goldenkeymanagement.com

About the author: Edward Rivas is the principal at Golden Treasures Real Estate, a company based in the Dominican Republic that specializes in luxury villas and other oceanfront properties in the coastal towns of Sosua, Cabarete, Cabrera, Puerto Plata and Cofresi.

Copyright © 2011 Edward Rivas , Dominican Republic.