Villa I Tatti

The famous art historian, Bernard Berenson, bought the Villa I Tatti in 1905 and (in 1909) commissioned two Englishmen (Cecil Ross Pinsent and Geoffrey Scott) to re-design the garden. Scott was famous as the author of a book on The Architecture of Humanism. Pinsent was a young and unknown architect. They began work at a time when Arts and Crafts designers, inspired by Blomfield, Sedding and others, were filled with enthusiasm for Italian renaissance gardens.The results of their work has many renaissance features, and a friendly pastiche charm, but it does not have the disciplined 'feel' of a genuine renaissance garden. It is now owned by Harvard University and they have a very restrictive policy regarding garden photography.