Baroque Art

1600-1775

Characteristics

• “Baroque” (from the Portuguese barroco, “a pearl of irregular form”) first used with negative connotations to describe art overladen with ornament—considered vulgar or debased Renaissance style

• Style was full of vigor, strong emotions, symbolism, and subtleties

Influences• As church and government authority was weakened in the

Renaissance, a need to establish new systems emerged. Leaders in religion, politics, economics, and science were interested in establishing order.– Bacon-scientific method– Descartes and Pascal-mathematics– Newton-physics– Colbert-mercantile system

• Religious Activity– Spread of Protestantism in northern Europe– Catholic Counter-Reformation (Jesuits)– Both sought to create a more profound and personal religious experience

• Art reflected a personalized expression of religious subjects depicting the pathos and joy of human struggle and victory over the inner self

Painting

• Line was diffused—one form melts into another

• Color—often monochromatic with variations in the saturation and value of one color

• Favored open form—action implied beyond the visible limits of the canvas

Tintoretto

• 1518-1594• Venetian• Last Supper (colorplate 33)– Dramatic use of light and movement– Figures melt into each other– Little contrast of color– Compare to Leonardo da Vinci’s….

Rembrandt

• 1606-1669• Dutch• Known for portraits—commissioned by many wealthy patrons

in Amsterdam• Utilized chiaroscuro—a treatment of light and shade in which

creates strong contrast• Strove to systematically make himself a master of reality by

sketching and painting hundreds of works (often self-portraits). • While his early works were created to satisfy the demands of

his patrons, his later works revealed the personalities of his subjects. As a result, he lost favor with many of his clients.

Works of Rembrandt• Dr. Tulp’s Anatomy Lesson (CP 34)

– Depicts a well-known doctor demonstrating the technique of surgery– A record of a dramatic event and a group portrait—careful attention to the individual characteristics of the

figures, famous citizens of Amsterdam– Focused, bright light on their faces highlight their individual characteristcs

• The Night Watch (CP35)– Depicts members of the Koveniers—a militia group in Amsterdam. Eighteen of the figures paid to have their

portrait included– Captain Frans Cocq—in the center (red sash) sporting typical attire of upper class– Wilhem van Ruytenburgh—to the left of the captain—listening as Cocq gives directions. Second in command—

shown by his position slightly behind the captain and shorter stature. Still dressed in upper class attire.– Girl on the left—allegorical figure representing glory. The chicken that hangs from her clothing was the symbol

of the Kloveniers– Combined portraiture with action, light and darkness, important citizens and fantasy characters– Attention to balance of all the figures and placement of vertical objects

• Supper at Emmaus (p 179)– Depicts the disciples’ meal at Emmaus– Two disciples come together speaking of Jesus who is no longer dwelling among them– “Where two ore three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them”

Peter Paul Rubens• 1577-1640• Flemish (Flanders—parts of present day Belgium, Netherlands, France)• Roman Catholic• Studied in Italy, painted for the Spanish court, and settled in Antwerp• Very popular and successful• Organized a commercial art studio operated on the assembly-line

method– Rubens would create preliminary sketches– Assistants prepared canvas, including background and figures– Rubens completed the painting

• Commissioned to create a number of paintings for Jesuit church in Antwerp

• Style utilizes vivid color, vigorous movement, robust figures

Works of Rubens• Rape of the Dughters of Leucippus (CP 37)

– Depicts Greek myth of the abduction of the daughters of Leucippus (Phoebe and Hilaeira) by Castor and Pollux to take as their wives.

– Movement created through short curved lines of arms, legs and torsos– Larger movements crated diagonally across canvas through the twisted

positions of the figures– Form melts into form through diffused lines

• The Assumption of the Virgin (CP 38)– Portrays the ascent of the Virgin to heaven surrounded by cherubs– Each person blends into the other either by motion or by light and shade– Each figure has its own identity while the fusion of figures creates one

movement– Heavenly and earthly figures are distinguished by their placement in the

painting

Velasquez

• 1599-1660• Spanish• Master of light and shade, space and realism• Las Meninas (Maids of Honor) CP39– Infanta Margarita with her attendants– King and queen reflected in mirror– Study of contrasts—color of Infanta’s dress with

her attendant’s, delicate features of Infanta with dwarfed features of figure on right

El Greco

• 1541-1614• Real name Domenicos Theotocopoulos• Lived in Spain; known as “El Greco” because of his Greek origins• Jesuit• Utilized techniques to convey a profound intensity of emotional

expression• Laocoon (CP 32)

– Elongation of human form– Diagonal movement of line– Upward movement of light– Color of bodies provides drama

Sculpture• More action, expressiveness, and individuality than Renaissance sculpture• Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598-1680)

– Italian– Jesuit

• Works reflect a devout and intense personal religious expressiveness

– David• Tension expressed in face and body• Sense of movement about to take place• Open form—David looks intently at Goliath, who exists beyond the sculpture

– Ecstasy of St Theresa• Depicts St Theresa’s dream, in which an angel pierces her heart with a dart, symbolice of

divine life• Expresses an ecsatsy of pain—Theresa has been pierced by the dart and is about to be

pierced again• The feeling of infinite space is created by the cloud on which the action takes place• The poised dart, angelic face, and flowing drapery combine to create dynamic motion

Architecture

• Utilized classic formal design• Added profuse ornamentation• Movement, light, and shade were all manipulated

to create a dramatic spectacle to the eye• While Renaissance architecture creates a feeling

of serenity and order through uncluttered lines, balance and symmetry, Baroque architecture creates exuberance and excitement through ornament and embellishment

Significant Structures• Stairway at Schloss Augustusburg-Bruhl, Germany (p. 187

– Compare to Michelangelo’s stairway of the Laurentian Library• Il Gesu-Rome, Italy (p. 188)

– Designed by Giacomo della Porta – Mix of Renaissance and Baroque styles, utilizing simple forms with ornamentation– A more reserved example of Baroque architecture, but was a model for other Baroque churches

• Sant Agnese-Rome, Italy (p. 189)– Designed by Francesco Borromini– Utilizes classical columns and a large done– Not all elements are functional; some are purely for decoration (pairs of columns, for example)– Depth is created by the towers set forward from the façade– Repeated ornamental carvings give a sense of undulating motion

• Monestary Church of Melk-Melk, Austria (p. 190)– Followed same basic plan of Il Gesu– Decorative and ornamental interior comproses a complex series of variations on the curves of the

round arch– Dynamic motion from floor to ceiling– Dramatic use of light in the vaulted dome

St Peter’s-Rome• Bernini made major contributions to the interior and exterior of

St Peter’s Basilica• Baldacchino

– Marks the tomb of St. Peter– A bronze representation of a cloth canopy traditionally carried over the

head of the Pope on high holy days– 4 spiral pillars are 60 feet high– Adorned with bees—symbol of the family of Pope Urban VIII, who

commissioned the structure– Sprigs of olive and bay, as well as acanthus leaves create more

decoration, as do cherubs and a dove, representing the holy spirit– Tassels dangle from the top of the canopy– Much of the ornamentation is gilded

St Peter’s

• Cathedra Petri (Throne of Peter)– Bernini envisioned a glorious work at the end of the

Cathedral to enhance the experience of looking down the nave past the Baldacchino

– Holds the relic of St Peter’s throne– A symbolic chair that houses the relic, surrounded by

large sculptures of the 4 doctors of the church and a cloud of bronze angels

– Contains a large stained glass window of a white dove, representing peace (about 6 feet wide)

– Beams of light made of bronze strips

St Peter’s

• Monument to Alexander VII– Built when Bernini was 80 years old– 4 figures representing Justice, Truth, Prudence and Charity

• Positioning of figures is significant—Truth rests her foot on a globe, specifically on England, where the rise of the Anglican church was a thorn in the side of Pope Alexander

– Death represented as a bronze skeleton in the door• Holds an hourglass—a reminder that our time on earth is limited

– An excellent study of contrast—the Pope and 4 figures are white marble, contrasted with the bronze skeleton and the colored shroud

St Peter’s

• Piazza San Pietro– Bernini designed the huge open space to enhance the

grandness of St Peters– The curved colonnade resembles two arms embracing

the people who come to the Cathedral– Obelisk in the center was brought to Rome in ancient

times and stood at Nero’s Circus, a chariot racing track that stood where St Peter’s currently does

– Along the top of the cathedral are hundreds of statues of biblical figures and saints created by Bernini