By James Smith

Baroque was a certain type of art that was

associated with many different styles and artists
in the late sixteenth century to the early
eighteenth century.

It’s meaning is unclear (it may have been used

as a term to describe irregular, strange etc.).

May have came from the Portuguese word

barocco or the Spanish word baroque meaning
an irregular shaped pearl.
Baroque art started off as a way of the Roman
Catholic Church to show Church doctrines to
the illiterate more so than the educated.
This idea came during the time of the Council
of Trent and the Reformation.
It was to be both doctrinally accurate as well
as visually/emotionally appealing.
It was a way for the Roman Catholic Church to
“win” back power and influence.
Baroque art started to move away from a
Mannerist like view (artificial and intellectual),
to a more naturalistic and dramatic type that
aimed at the senses.

Baroque art depended on contrapposto

(“counterpoise”) that showed the tensions
within figures that made them seem almost
realistic.
Naturalism- displayed everyday life and real
situations (Caravaggio).

High-baroque- showed lots of emotion,

theatrical like pictures, and lots of energy.

Classicism- High Renaissance like principles

with balance and clarity (Carracci).
In Baroque paintings, the main conceptions
were of monarchy, iconography, religion, and
movement/space.
Annibale Carracci (1560-1609)- A Bologna
painter. His works were know for their great
landscapes. Most of his best works are in
fresco which is painting on a moist surface
with colors grounded up in water. His works
include Assumption of the Virgin Mary and The
Flight Into Egypt.
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-
1610)- Italian painter who was usually known
by Caravaggio. Really emphasized
chiaroscuro. Had an ability to express a vivid
and amazing scene of a passing of an
important moment. He also painted many
religious works. His works include The
Resurrection of Lazarus and The Martyrdom of
Saint Ursula.
Baroque sculptures showed great energy and
movement, it showed multiple viewing angles,
and the use of different colored marble from
different marbles.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini- He was an Italian
painter, sculptor, and architect, but was
renown for his sculpting. He built the St.
Teresa in Ecstasy (1645-1652) for the Cornaro
Chapel of the church of Saint Maria della
Vittoria in Rome for the Cornaro family. He
designed the entire chapel for the Cornaro
family. The main focus was the St. Teresa
sculpture and Bernini aimed to portray
religious experience as extremely physical.
In Baroque architecture, emphasis began to be
placed on domes, chiaroscuro, color effects, and
volume/void.

The innovation of the state apartment became a

major interior design which consisted of a chain
of increasingly rich interiors all leading to a
throne room or state bedroom.

The innovation of immense and beautiful

staircases.
Example: Stairway to Heaven (1750) by
Johann Leonhard Dietzenhofer.
Example: A room in a state apartment.
Baroque art started to lose favor with artists
when the new form of art called Neoclassicism
began to come about later in the eighteenth
century.

Neoclassicism was the art style of

incorporating old art works into revised art
works from the artist’s point of view.
Baroque art served as a way for the Roman
Catholic Church to bring back some of its
members from the Reformation movements.

It served as a way for the nobility to show

their wealth and power.

Helped those who were illiterate understand

the Catholic faith and history.
I believe that this helped influence later
generations of art (neoclassicism).

It was a helpful guide for people during the

Scientific Revolution .
 "Baroque - Baroque Art." Oil Paintings Reproduction - Canvas
Oil Painting Reproductions For Sale. Web. 27 Oct. 2009.
<http://www.huntfor.com/arthistory/c17th-
mid19th/baroque.htm>.
 "Baroque -." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 27 Oct.
2009.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baroque#Modern_usage>.
 "BAROQUE ART AND ARCHITECTURE,." The History Channel -
Home Page. Web. 27 Oct. 2009.
<http://www.history.com/encyclopedia.do?
articleId=202283>.
 "Baroque Art." Art Gallery Museum Painting Fine
Art Artist Biography. Web. 27 Oct. 2009.
<http://www.picturalissim.com/art_baroque.htm>.
 "Baroque Sculpture." Rome in the footsteps of a
1750 traveller. Web. 27 Oct. 2009.
<http://www.romeartlover.it/Sculptures.html>.
 Kagan, Donald, Steven Ozmet, and Frank M.
Turner. The Western Heritage Since 1300. Upper
Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006. Print.