To wander around the hallowed halls of Villa Albani-Torlonia in Rome, being surrounded by its vast collection of art and antiquities numbering in the hundreds—a collection that includes masterpieces even top museums would be grateful to possess— was a privilege that one will remember for as long as time allows. Lauded as the cradle of neoclassicism, this villa has survived 275 years of history under the auspices of Fondazione Torlonia, its sprawling grounds of towering pine woods and oak-lined avenues leading to an exquisite parterre.
Commissioned in 1747 by Cardinal Alessandro Albani, who had an impressive collection of classical art, the villa’s interiors are frescoed in marble. Desiring to stay true to French philosopher René Descartes’s maxim of never leaving any space empty, the cardinal also had it filled to the brim with sculptures, mosaics and stuccoes over floors, walls and ceilings as well as every nook and cranny as far as the eye can see. Among the names involved in its conception and design was the German art historian JJ Winckelmann, whose role in the rise of neoclassicism can never be downplayed.
Villa Albani-Torlonia was more than a place of residence. It was also a cultural venue. As such, it embodied the highest expressions of the antiquarian taste that defined Rome as the ultimate destination of the European custom known as the Grand Tour, especially for generations of art students who came in search of inspiration from the then-newly discovered Greco-Roman ideals. And this inescapable sensory overload, this miasma of devastating beauty, was the frame of mind that Alessandro Michele wanted to relay at Gucci’s presentation of its new Hortus Deliciarum high jewellery collection one bright summer morning.
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Denne historien er fra October 2022-utgaven av VOGUE India.
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Breathe In, Breathe Out
A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork
Red Pill, Blue Pill
India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum
Sign of the times
No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily
Return to form
Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports
Dimple, All Day
YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone
Let it grow
When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.
Beauty and the feast
The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.
Sweet serendipity
From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.
