Baroque

This all encompassing movement was drama produced by exaggeration, grandeur and movement. Starting in the early 17^th century in Italy the style was much used in religious art and buildings. Furniture and art was heavy and dark and incorporated primary colours.

Examples – Caravaggio and Bernini

In Architecture

Key Facts

Started in Italy in the early 17^th century
Used colour, light/shade, intensity as a response to the need for architecture that was a mixture of a response to the emotions and the statement the wealth/power of the church
Later in the century had become secularised in the form of grand palaces throughout Europe, including Notre Dame de Quebec Basilica Cathedral, France, Castle Trier, German and St Peter’s Basilica, Rome
Promoted by the Jesuits and, therefore, examples can be seen in South America.

Important features:

Broad, circular forms
Dramatic use of light and contrasts
Opulence of ornaments such as putti in plasterwork, elaborate wood carvings, stucco, marble and faux finishes such as tromple l’oeil
Ceiling frescoes

Variations of interpretation occurred in each country that adopted the style

In France the open three wing layout was established for palaces (Chateau de Maisons, near Paris). There was a blending of traditional French elements such as complex mansard roofs with obvious Italianate influences. Later in the development the gardens formed a significant part of the whole (Palace of Versailles).

In the Netherlands the style developed different in the North (Protestant) and South (Catholic) – the latter being more dynamic

Initially, there was little interest in changes in continental architecture in England. Only when Christopher Wren gained influence, particularly after the Great Fire of London, did the Baroque start to take hold. In the case of St Paul’s Cathedral there was a fusing of Palladian style with Baroque

William Talman designed the first genuinely Baroque country house at Chatsworth but it was with the emergence of Vanbrugh and Hawksmoor that the movement was widely accepted. To Italian eyes the design of Castle Howard and Blenheim may seem rigid because of their heavy embellishments and apparent mass/solidity but the flamboyance of the style captivated the public in Britain for a short time.

The first Baroque structure in Hungary was the Jesuit Church of Nagyszombat built by Spozzo between 1629 and 1637. Small Baroque palaces were built around the country with the double influence of both the Austrian and the Italian versions which lead to a local version that lacked excessive decoration and seemed ‘rural’ in flavour.

South America saw Baroque elements mixing with local and Moorish influences (San Francisco de Asis Church, Lima constructed in 1673). This meant that characteristics included twin towered facades and stucco decoration which, depending on the South American country, could be very lavish.