Art and Architecture: Library Research
Three Examples of Baroque Art
England’s King Charles I was a popular model in the early 1600s. Anthony van Dyke painted him “At the Hunt” (1635) in full hunting costume standing confidently, maybe even arrogantly, and ready for action in front of his horse and page. The sculpture of David (of the Bible story Goliath) produced by Gianlorenzo Bernini, a huge sculpture from marble for the Cardinal Scipione Borghese (1623). St. Paul’s Cathedral was rebuilt by Christopher Wren after it had been devastated by a fire in 1675.
These forms of art and architecture all have the Baroque style in common. This essay discusses the artists, show the objects compare and contrast, and what was their significance, if any when they were finished. Although the objects each represent a different form of art it is expected that each will have typical characteristics of Baroque art.
Three Artists, Half a Century of Baroque Art
In general Baroque art is recognizable typified by an ornate, dark and heavy. The late Baroque period was moving into the detailed, light and fanciful characteristics of the Rococo period. The three objects discussed here were finished in 1623, 1635 and 1675; a half a century in the evolution of the Baroque.
Two of the pieces, the statue of David and St. Paul’s Cathedral, are typical of the Baroque period because they both reference religion. The portrait of King Charles I of England is typical in that the subject is part of the elite who were supporters of the art and had a special effect on the portraiture of the time.
Van Dyck, Portrait Painter
Artists could not survive without a benefactor; therefore the models in the portraits were often painted as they wanted to be seen by others. Before Van Dyck moved to England when Charles I was in power he also had painted religious scenes; but his approach to portraiture made him a favored beneficiary of Charles I and popular with other aristocrats (Sharpe, 2009, p. 6). The success lay in his ability to paint without patronizing his models, but by informing the viewer about the life and history of the people in the portraits. For example, the historian Sharpe points out the paintings (oil on canvas) by van Dyck of Charles I speak volumes about the King’s personal moral and philosophical beliefs about what makes a good leader. He was a leader who was self-controlled and wanted order not chaos. He tried to live his philosophy. (Sharpe, 2009, p. 6-7)
In the painting we see that the King’s straight posture and attitude of capability over the scene do reflect those personality traits. The painter used dark shadows and dark colors around three quarters of the canvas acting as a frame to the model. The King became the center of attention because lighter colors used to paint his figure and the sky; the sky being the backdrop behind his confident figure.
Bernini, Sculptor
David by Bernini is showing his emotions very clearly in his face as he stands up to Goliath. The statue is sculpted from white marble but the emotions are dark and deep. He seems to be gaining all his inner resources of strength and focus to bring down his enemy. Martin (1977) describes the feelings as “intense emotionalism” and points out the artist was only about twenty five years old when the sculpture was made (p. 77-78). The David of the sculpture is close to the same age so may be portraying some of the artist’s feelings of frustration, courage, or the focus he needed to accomplish his task.
Bernini’s talent was obvious at a young age and was encouraged to develop his talent. Lubow (2008) describes him as “a highly original thinker, not merely a consummate craftsman” (p. 79). He was talented in many art forms but is best known for his statues which represent his models as almost real; he captured “the essence of his subject’s personality as well as appearance (Lubow, 2008, p. 78). He developed techniques to make the folds and pleats in garments fall naturally as well as many other techniques to give the statues a feel of warmth and life.
Wren, Architect
Clark (1923) describes the “severity” of the criticisms towards Wren and his structural design for St. Paul’s Cathedral. He offers a reminder of Wren’s inventiveness and his sound use of buttresses interlocked in a system to make the dome solid. He admiringly describes how “that part of the building which so magnificently arrests our attention, the whole of the cupola, which although so large, is really a masterpiece in stability and yet in lightness of construction is largely of fine Portland masonry.” (pp.73, 77-78)
St. Paul’s Cathedral’s tower transcripts design were replicas of those on the San Maria della Pace which was finished in 1657 for Pope Alexander VII. San Maria della Pace in Rome was designed by Pietro da Cortona. Other Baroque Cathedral’s built during that time copied other portions of Cortona’s design, including an imitation of the portico for the San Andrea al Quirinale by Bernini. (Martin, 1977, p. 342)
Wren was striving for a stable structure so the church would last coupled with a feeling of lightness for the worshippers. He was not afraid to invent new ways neither to ensure stability nor to borrow beautiful ideas for others. Wren was not rewarded by the Londoners who did not adapt well to the new look of St. Paul’s Cathedral. He was up against the biggest challenge of the three artists because the cathedral had originally been built in 604 A.D. It had undergone destruction and finally the fire before Wren took over the overseeing of the rebuilding. His first priority seemed to be to give the church stability and he used huge ashlars stones and mortar to build the walls. He changed the style of the church from Norman to Baroque so that the church could be part of his contemporary time. (Clark, 1923, p. 76)
Acceptance
In Italy Bernini was encouraged as soon as his talent was recognized at a young age to make sculptors. The Flemish painter Van Dyck was more accepted in England than in his home country. Christopher Wren received a great deal of criticism for the finished St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. But he had conceived and built a strong and sturdy structure designed as befit the times with columns, two towers and a huge dome. Eventually the Londoners came to appreciate his work.
References
Clark, S. (1923). St. Paul’s Cathedral. Observations on Wren’s system of buttresses for the dome piers and on some other things. A chapter in Sir Christopher Wren, A.D. 1632-1723. Dircks, R. London, UK: Hodder and Stoughton.
Lubow, A. (2008). Bernini’s Genius: The Baroque master animated 17th-century Rome with his astonishing sculpture and architecture. Smithsonian. Vol. October, pp. 76-83.
Martin, J. R. (1977). Baroque. New York, NY: Harper & Row.
Sharpe, K. (2009). Portrait of an Age. History Today. 59(3)March, p. 6-7.
Tinniswood, A. (2001). His Invention So Fertile: A Life of Christopher Wren. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Appendix
Charles I at the Hunt.Anthony Van Dyck. (1635)
David. Gianlorenzo Bernini. (1623)
St. Paul’s Cathedral. Christopher Wren. (1675)
