An examination of the relationship between landscape architecture and painting in England during the 18th and 19th centuries

Abstract

The unity of the arts has been acknowledged for centuries. It was during the 18th and 19th centuries in England that a new attitude toward nature and the development of the "picturesque" landscape aesthetic brought the two arts of landscape painting and design closer together. 17th century Italian landscape painting became associated with the informality and irregularity of nature, and became a source of inspiration for many landscape gardeners. The extent to which the landscape designers, William Kent, Capability Brown, and Humphrey Repton, were influenced by painting varied greatly. In turn the developing landscape design theory and aesthetic influenced many English landscape painters searching for a native style of their own, both in terms of subject matter and technique. The creation of the English landscape aesthetic was an extremely complicated one with ongoing influences resulting in constant changes and effects.