本文從印刷文化的視角,探討英國貴族鄉間別墅從私人財產成為國家品味表徵的過程。十八世紀中葉起,隨著英國境內旅行風氣的興盛與出版業的發達,鄉間別墅景觀成為版畫出版中醒目的新類別;大量出版的參訪指南與遊記也廣為描述了鄉間別墅的建築、庭園、乃至藝術收藏。1770年代末起,更興起結合了圖與文的貴族鄉間別墅版畫集。這些圖文出版,使得貴族私人宅邸成為公眾矚目的對象,並促使鄉間別墅被視為英國美景與藝術寶庫的觀看方式獲得普及。本文首先爬梳鄉間別墅景觀版畫的演變,追索鄉間別墅版畫集此種出版品類型的興起。接著探討參訪指南與遊記中對鄉間別墅藝術收藏的描述。最後,再聚焦於十九世紀初鄉間別墅版畫集的發展,討論其如何對鄉間別墅景觀與藝術收藏內容提出新的觀看方式。
Looking at how English country houses were represented in print, this article explores the process through which the status of country houses was transformed from private property to symbolic of national taste. From the mid-18th century, with the rise of domestic travel and the printmaking industry, views of country houses became a conspicuous new genre of publication. Increasingly published guidebooks and travel accounts also provided plentiful descriptions of the buildings, gardens, and art collections of country houses. The end of 1770s even witnessed the appearance of a new kind of books which combined pictorial and literary descriptions of country houses. These publications brought country houses into visual focus for the public, and helped popularize the way of seeing country houses as representative of the English landscape and national artistic treasures.
This article first traces the development of printed views of country houses and investigates the context in which books of county house prints arose. Guidebooks and travel accounts will then be explored specifically in relation to their descriptions of art collections. Finally, the focus will be on the development of books of country house prints in the early 19th century, so as to examine the proposed new ways of looking at county houses and their art collections.