Art History IIThe Baroque

Bernini and Baroque Rome

Gian Lorenzo Bernini, sculptor and architect, shaped Rome: his colonnade (1656–1667) wraps St. Peter's Square like open arms.

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Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598 to 1680) was a sculptor, architect and stage designer who worked for a series of popes, above all Urban VIII and Alexander VII. More than anyone, he gave Baroque Rome its look. Rome was the center of the Catholic Church, and the popes wanted the city to welcome pilgrims and show the Church's confidence after the Reformation (see What Makes Art Baroque).

Looking closely: the colonnade of St. Peter's Square

Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Colonnade of St. Peter's Square, 1656 to 1667. Vatican City.

Describe. In front of St. Peter's Basilica, two great curved arms of columns enclose an oval piazza. The colonnades have 284 Doric columns in four rows, built of travertine stone, with 140 statues of saints along the top. Analyze. Walk in and the curving rows seem to close around you; walk along them and the columns line up and open again, so the space changes as you move. The oval sets the basilica at the end of a grand, theatrical approach. Interpret. Bernini himself compared the arms to the motherly arms of the Church, embracing the faithful who arrived.

Rome and the Vatican, with the other Baroque centers of this unit.

Key idea

Bernini shaped Baroque Rome as sculptor and architect. His colonnade for St. Peter's Square (1656 to 1667) wraps the piazza like open arms.

Walls that move: Borromini

Bernini's great rival, Francesco Borromini (1599 to 1667), built the small church of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane (1638 to 1641; façade finished 1677). Its walls swing in and out in waves, and its oval dome is covered in a honeycomb of crosses, octagons and hexagons (coffers) that shrink toward the lantern at the top, so the dome looks taller than it is.

Francesco Borromini, the oval dome of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, Rome, 1638 to 1641.

Why it works

A Renaissance church is built from clear, separate units: squares, circles, straight walls. Borromini and Bernini made the wall itself bend. Convex and concave curves push and pull against each other, and light from hidden windows falls from above. The building seems to move, which is the Baroque goal of involving the viewer turned into stone.

Common mistake

People think Baroque buildings are just Renaissance ones with more ornament. Check the plan and the walls: Renaissance buildings use flat walls and simple shapes; Baroque architects bent walls into curves, used ovals, and staged light, so the space seems to move as you walk.

Worked example: Renaissance or Baroque?

A church façade curves in at the sides and bulges out in the middle, with deep shadows between its columns. Which style is it, and why?
  1. The façade is not flat: it curves in and out.
  2. Columns cast deep shadows, giving strong light and dark.
  3. A wall that seems to move is a Baroque idea.

Answer: Baroque: the curving, moving wall and strong contrasts.

Bernini was a sculptor first. His marble figures in Roman churches catch people mid-action, with fluttering drapery and open mouths, as if the stone were alive. He also designed fountains, tombs and the great bronze canopy over the high altar of St. Peter's.

Practice

Pass with 3 right answers, the last 2 in a row. Each right answer earns 2 XP.

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