Performing with Water: Voyage of the Viewer in Roman Water Gardens

Treat, Myca

Item

Performing with Water: Voyage of the Viewer in Roman Water Gardens

Treat, Myca

Abstract

As prominent villa spaces, the Sperlonga Grotto and the Canopus of Hadrian’s villa are compelling early Imperial sites known best for their (respectively) dramatic and perplexing sculptural collections. However, the arguably more curious aspect of the villa sites is their manipulation of water. The Sperlonga Grotto is a naturally occurring lagoon grotto fitted with sculptural scenes that highlight the tales of Odysseus and an island triclinium. The Canopus is an artificial river featuring a so-called “eclectic” assortment of statues. Within the two villa spaces, the curation of water itself as adornment is just as important and compelling as curated sculptural displays. This thesis, “Performing with Water: Voyage of the Viewer in Roman Water Gardens”, unpacks these water gardens as the multilayered experiences that they provided to the ancient visitor. Often framed as “theatrical” spaces, the Sperlogna Grotto and the Canopus are, in different ways, spaces deliberately constructed as products of cultural choices. Such cultural choices will be unraveled through an investigation of sculptural curation, the manipulation of water, and existence of similar experimental spaces in a cultural context. Thus, this thesis aims to highlight the Sperlonga Grotto and the Canopus of Hadrian’s Villa as spaces where performativity is woven into their visual, physical, and material experiences as reflections of the styled culture of the early Imperial period.