The Vizcayans: Beauty in the City
Posted by Charity Watcher on Tuesday, November 10, 2015
The Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, formerly known as Villa Vizcaya, is the former estate and villa of James Deering, the businessman of the famous Deering McCormick-International Harvester. The entire estate is located in the present-day posh Coconut Grove neighborhood overlooking the Biscayne Bay in Miami, Florida. The early 20th-century vast estate includes beautiful Italian Renaissance gardens, natural woodland landscape, and a compound composed of historic village outbuildings.
The architecture and the surrounding landscape were significantly influenced by the Veneto and Tuscan Italian Renaissance culture. The buildings were designed with the principles of the Mediterranean Revival architecture style coupled with Baroque elements for accents. Paul Chalfin was designated as the design director.
While the estate started as private property, the Vizcaya is now owned by the Miami-Dade County. The general public can now access the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens with Miami Metrorail’s Vizcaya Station serving the estate. The Vizcaya Museum and Gardens Trust governs the entire estate.
The Vizcaya estate property was originally composed of 180 acres of shoreline, swamps, and dense tropical forests located inland. Deering was a conservationist who wanted to preserve as much of the natural landscape as possible, thus, his decision to develop the estate along the shore for purposes of forest conservation.
Today, the estate consists of 50 acres of the gardens and the remaining native forest with the villa as the star of the landscape. Of the 50 acres, the Italian Renaissance formal gardens occupy 10 acres while 40 acres are dedicated to the jungle forest.
Of course, the villa’s museum is the star attraction. Guests marvel at over 70 rooms with each room decorated with numerous antiques, most of which are of the 15th to 19th century European origin. Visitors can see the villa and its landscape on a daily basis except on Tuesdays as well as on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
The architecture and the surrounding landscape were significantly influenced by the Veneto and Tuscan Italian Renaissance culture. The buildings were designed with the principles of the Mediterranean Revival architecture style coupled with Baroque elements for accents. Paul Chalfin was designated as the design director.
While the estate started as private property, the Vizcaya is now owned by the Miami-Dade County. The general public can now access the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens with Miami Metrorail’s Vizcaya Station serving the estate. The Vizcaya Museum and Gardens Trust governs the entire estate.
The Vizcaya estate property was originally composed of 180 acres of shoreline, swamps, and dense tropical forests located inland. Deering was a conservationist who wanted to preserve as much of the natural landscape as possible, thus, his decision to develop the estate along the shore for purposes of forest conservation.
Today, the estate consists of 50 acres of the gardens and the remaining native forest with the villa as the star of the landscape. Of the 50 acres, the Italian Renaissance formal gardens occupy 10 acres while 40 acres are dedicated to the jungle forest.
Of course, the villa’s museum is the star attraction. Guests marvel at over 70 rooms with each room decorated with numerous antiques, most of which are of the 15th to 19th century European origin. Visitors can see the villa and its landscape on a daily basis except on Tuesdays as well as on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
