HUM 102
Chapter 21 –
The Baroque in Italy:
the Church and Its Appeal
LECTURE OBJECTIVES
 Identify the placement of the Baroque Period on
the Art History Timeline.
 Define Baroque and the cultural meaning of the
term.
 Understand the Influence of the Period and its
core artistic elements
 Explore the art of the most influential Baroque
Artists

Explore Baroque Music and Culture as well as it’s
influences.
Before the Baroque:
Mannerism Art
• A term used to describe a period of art
from1527–1580 that predates The
Baroque Period.
• Mannerism Art is artistic expression that
breaks the rules.
• Mannerism emphasized artifice
(cleverness or artful skill) over nature
What characterizes
Mannerism Art?
• The political atmosphere in Italy changed with
the takeover of Florence by the Medici
• The religious atmosphere of Europe changed
with the onset of the Protestantism
• Art became disturbed and emotional
What does Baroque mean?
• Pronunciation
- Like the word broke with an a after the b
- Ba-Roke
• Is a derivative of the Italian word barocco, which
philosophers used to describe an obstacle in
schematic logic.
• Most widely known as a derivative of the Portuguese
word barroco (Spanish barrueco), used to describe
an irregular or imperfectly shaped pearl, and this
usage still survives in the jeweler’s term baroque pearl.
• Word was used to describe the new style of art
because of how different it was. Eventually it came to
denote any contorted idea or process of thought.
Understanding The Baroque
•The Baroque was a term used to describe
art from the post Renaissance era (15901750).
•Comes from a Portuguese term meaning
“rough” or “irregular”, originally a derisive
(mocking, sarcastic, cynical) term.
•Heavily influenced by religious and political
wars of the 17th century (French Civil War,
Thirty Years War, War of Spanish Succession,
etc.)
Understanding The Baroque
•Most artistic realism was
accomplished by the Renaissance
so differences in artistic style usually
comes from the patron who
requested the art
•Styles depended on the religion of
the artists’ ruler, but was usually
highly emotional and powerful
Elements of The Baroque Period
• Tension
• Emotion
• Expression
• Surprise
• Use of detail and light to
create a mood and send a
message through a work of
art.
• Use of expressive and
dynamic portrayals of
people in the paintings.
• Many works of art during
the Baroque era dealt with
moral and ethical issues.
Art with a Message
REFORMATION v. COUNTER-REFORMATION
• Defining Reformation:
The religious movement in the 16th century that
had for its object the reform of the Roman
Catholic Church, and that led to the
establishment of the Protestant churches.
• Defining Counter-Reformation:
The movement within the Roman Catholic
Church that followed the Protestant
Reformation of the 16th century counteracting
or opposing the reformation.
Art with a Message
Goals of Art during the COUNTER-REFORMATION
• To deliberately evoke intense emotional response
from the viewer
• To create dramatically lit, often theatrical
compositions
• To use diverse media such as bronze and marble
within a single artwork
• To create work with spectacular technical
virtuosity
The Baroque
INFLUENTIAL ITALIAN ARTISTS
• Bernini,
• Pozzo,
• Borromini,
• Caravaggio,
• Gentileschi
Gianlorenzo BERNINI
His works include:
 The colonnade of St. Peter’s Piazza
 The baldacchino (canopy) on the St.
Peter’s altar, which was commissioned by
Pope Urban VIII to define the alter space
Gianlorenzo BERNINI
His works include:
 Vibrant marble sculpture of David
 Ecstasy of St. Theresa sculpture
- Bernini’s sculpture equates Saint Teresa’s
religious visions to sexual orgasm and
ecstatic dancing
Gianlorenzo BERNINI
His works include:
 Fountain of the Four Rivers, representing
the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges, and
the Plata rivers, each carved by a
different member of Bernini's workshop.
Bernini:
Ecstacy of
Saint
Theresa
(1652)
Andrea Pozzo

Best known for applying his
knowledge of perspectives to
design artwork for the cupola, the
apse, and the ceiling of the St.
Ignatius Church in Rome

Created drama in his art with
tenebrism and foreshortening
Pozzo:
Apotheosis of
Saint Ignatius
of Loyola.
1691-94.
Approx.:
56' × 115’
Michelangelo Merisi
(Caravaggio)
• Caravaggio is considered
an icon of the Baroque
Period. Most famous for his
use of light and dark.
• Commissioned to paint the
Conversion of Saint Paul for
the Cerasi Chapel in the
Roman church of Santa
Maria del Popolo.
•
It illustrates the conversion
of the Pharisee Saul to
Christianity, when he
became the disciple Paul.
.
Michelangelo Merisi
(Caravaggio)
• Caravaggio was
commissioned to create The
Calling of St. Matthew, which
he completed from 1599-1600.
• He painted the scene using
the attire of his time and not
the attire of Jesus’s so his
audience could identify with
the portrayal.
• His use of tenebrism contrasts
large areas of darkness with
smaller illuminated areas.
.
The Baroque in Italy
Caravaggio:
Conversion of St. Paul
(1601)
The saint-to-be appears
amid his conversion, flat
on his back with his arms
thrown up. In the
background, an old hostler
seems preoccupied with
caring for the horse. At first
inspection, little here
suggests the momentous
significance of the spiritual
event taking place.
The Baroque in Italy
Caravaggio: The Calling of Saint Matthew
The most dramatic
element of The Calling of
Saint Matthew is light. The
revelatory power of light is
analogous to the
transformative power of
faith. Caravaggio’s use of
light brought him to the
forefront of Baroque Art. He
is often called the Master
of Light and Dark and is
credited with the most
influential use of tenebrism.
Artemisia Gentileschi.
•
She painted her earliest signed
and dated work, "Susanna and
the Elders," around 1610, and later
created such works as "Madonna
and Child, "Judith Slaying
Holofernes" and "Cleopatra.".
•
She developed her artistic skills
with the help of her father, Orazio
Gentileschi, an accomplished
painter in his own right. Orazio was
greatly influenced by Caravaggio.
For this reason she is considered a
Caravaggisti Woman.
Artemisia Gentileschi.
•
She was most popular for her
many versions of "Judith Slaying
Holofernes.“ She painted five
versions to express her anger and
feelings towards men after being
raped by one of her father's
colleagues, Agostino Tassi .
•
When Tassi refused to marry her,
her father pursued a legal case
against him. The trial took several
months. The court exiled Tassi from
Rome, but the order was never
enforced.
The Baroque in Italy |Gentileschi: Judith and
Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes
Around 1611, Gentileschi
completed "Judith Slaying
Holofernes," which depicts
Judith in the act of saving
the Jewish people by
killing Assyrian general
Holofernes; the painting
shows a close-up of this
brutal scene—Judith
slicing Holofernes's throat
while her handmaiden
helps to hold him down.
The Baroque in Italy |Gentileschi: Judith and
Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes
The story of Judith
appeared a number of
times in her art. Soon after
finishing “Judith Slaying
Holofernes” (around 1613),
Gentileschi painted "Judith
and her Maidservant,"
which shows the pair after
Holofernes's death, with
the maid holding a basket
containing his severed
head.
The Baroque Period
MUSIC
Music in the Baroque Period
Giovanni Gabrieli and the
Drama of Harmony —
 Venice earned its
place at the center of
the musical world
largely through the
efforts of Gabrieli.
 He was among the first
to write religious music
intended specifically
for wind ensemble.
Music in the Baroque Period
Giovanni Gabrieli and the
Drama of Harmony —

The distinctive sound of
his music derived in part
from his association with
St. Mark's Cathedral in
Venice and his use of the
single note in
compositions.

This method —the tonic
note is used to heighten
the sense of harmonic
drama.
Music in the Baroque Period
Giovanni Gabrieli and the
Drama of Harmony —

St. Mark’s Cathedral's
unusual layout hadtwo choir
lofts each with its own
organ.

This led to the development
of what has been called the
Venetian style of
composition -- a colorful and
dramatic involving multiple
choirs and instrumental
ensembles; many of
Gabrieli's works are written
for two or four choirs with a
dozen or more parts.
Music in the Baroque Period
Claudio Monteverdi and
the Birth of Opera —
 Monteverdi was the
musical director at Saint
Mark’s in Venice where
he mastered a new,
text-based musical form;
the opera.

The inspiration for his first
opera, Orfeo, was the
musical drama of
ancient Greek theater.
Music in the Baroque Period
Claudio Monteverdi and the
Birth of Opera —

Monteverdi was the
musical director at Saint
Mark’s in Venice where he
mastered a new, textbased musical form; the
opera.

The inspiration for his first
opera, Orfeo, was the
musical drama of ancient
Greek theater based on
Orpheus and Eurydice.
Music in the Baroque Period
Claudio Monteverdi and
the Birth of Opera —
 Active Listening Guide:
Monteverdi: "Tu se' morta"
from Orfeo
Music in the Baroque Period
Antonio Vivaldi and the
Concerto

Considered Venice’s
most important Baroque
composer

Many of his works were
written specifically for
performance by girl
choirs and instrumental
ensembles.

Vivaldi specialized in
composing concertos, a
three-movement secular
form of instrumental
music.
Music in the Baroque Period
Antonio Vivaldi and the
Concerto

Many of his compositions
were written for the female
music ensemble of the
Ospedale della Pietà, a
home for abandoned
children where Vivaldi had
been employed from 1703
to 1715 and from 1723 to
1740 as maestro di violino.

Female ensembles were
most popular because girls
required musical skill to
secure a good marriage.
Music in the Baroque Period
Antonio Vivaldi and
the Concerto
 Active Listening Guide:
Vivaldi: Spring, I from
The Four Seasons
LECTURE REVIEW

The Baroque Period appears in the Counter-Reformation
Era on the Art History Timeline after The Mannerism Period.

Baroque comes from the Portugues word barraco which
means misshapen pearl. The cultural meaning of the term
began as derogatory and became respected.

The Baroque Period birthed tenebrism and the use of
emotion and tension in art.

Most influential Baroque artists include Bernini, Carravagio,
Gentileschi and Vivaldi

Baroque music gave us the tonic tone, opera, and vibrant
rich music