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In 1789, Jedidiah Morse described Newport and its environs as the
“Eden of America” in the First Geography of the United States.
In the nineteenth century landscape architects such as Frederick
Law Olmsted created dramatic gardens by the sea for his wealthy
clients, and artists from John Frederick Kensett to Henry James and
Thornton Wilder celebrated the city as a verdant paradise in
painting, poetry, and prose. America’s Eden: Newport Landscapes
through the Ages builds on the city’s iconic reputation as a
centuries-old paradise, and establishes Newport as a cultural
landscape of national significance. The comprehensive history from
European settlement to the present day is illustrated by a treasure
trove of rare period maps, paintings and photographs by prominent
artists, and drawings and sketches by leading designers. Ten
chapters discuss topography, geology, and climate; the history of
the city from the early days of colonial New England, through the
Gilded Age estates, to the 21st century. A chapter on Living
Legends emphasises the importance of Newport’s historic trees.
The book serves as a critical resource guide encompassing landscape
architecture, fine art, tree and plant propagation, and the
conservation of natural sites. A rich story of art, history, design
and horticulture awaits readers among the gardens, gazebos and
trees of Newport.
As one of the most historically intact cities in North America,
Newport, Rhode Island, has a cultural and architectural heritage of
national significance. Each of the city's districts has its own
distinct character with street plans and buildings revealing the
political, religious, commercial, and artistic forces that have
shaped Newport through the ages. Stately Colonial squares and
bustling wharves, picturesque Victorian villas, and scenic drives,
opulent Gilded Age palaces for the few and electric streetcars for
the many, preservation movements to honor the past, and modernist
schemes for a metropolis of the future all tell stories of urban
beauty and controversy, of eras of lavish building, urban decay,
and extraordinary revival. The Artful City is a richly illustrated
portrait of the city from colonial times to the present, documented
and celebrated in the maps, paintings, photographs, poetry, and
prose of renowned artists and writers. This work is a highly
readable illustrated history of one of America's most important
physical and cultural entities.
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