Baroque Architecture
Baroque architecture is a distinctive style that emerged in the late sixteenth century and flourished into the early eighteenth century, primarily as a response to the liturgical needs of the Counter-Reformation. Originating in Italy, it quickly spread across Europe, influencing countries such as France, the Netherlands, and England. Characterized by its dramatic use of curvilinear forms, bold ornamentation, and a strong sense of movement and rhythm, Baroque architecture often aimed to evoke emotional responses through its theatricality. Notable examples include Gian Lorenzo Bernini's redesign of St. Peter's Square in Rome and the Church of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane by Francesco Borromini, which exemplifies the style's complexity and dynamism.
Prominent architects like Carlo Maderno and Sir Christopher Wren contributed significantly to the Baroque movement, each integrating classical elements with innovative designs. The style also saw adaptations in secular buildings, reflecting the cultural and artistic currents of the time. As the Baroque period transitioned into the eighteenth century, it evolved into the more ornate rococo style, which further emphasized intricate details and organic forms. Today, Baroque architecture is celebrated for its grandeur and emotional depth, continuing to inspire admiration and scholarly interest across diverse cultural contexts.
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Baroque Architecture
Baroque architecture is a building style that developed at the end of the sixteenth century and continued into the early eighteenth century, though in some regions of Europe the style remained popular until the 1750s. It began as a movement that satisfied the liturgical requirements of the Counter-Reformation church, but eventually its emphasis on curvilinear forms, rhythm, and theatricality also came to be used in secular buildings. The movement began in Italy, and then spread to France, the Netherlands, England, and other places in Europe.
Background
The history of baroque architecture begins with Il Gesù in Rome, the mother church of the Jesuit order, designed by Giacomo da Vignola. To fulfill the demands of the Counter-Reformation, the building features a broad barrel-vaulted aisleless nave that provides an unobstructed view of the main altar where the rituals of the mass unfold. The façade (1575–1584) was by Giacomo della Porta, Michelangelo’s pupil. Here the emphasis is on the main entrance, achieved through a gradual crescendo of architectural elements, to symbolically invite the faithful into the building. These elements became some of the main characteristics of baroque architecture and would be applied in particular for the construction of Jesuit churches around the world. In Rome in 1605, Paul V called for the conversion of St. Peter’s Basilica, the mother church of the Catholic faith, to a longitudinal structure. Carlo Maderno won the competition for the commission, and he added three bays to form a nave and a façade that utilizes the same gradual crescendo as della Porta’s. Maderno’s façade of the Church of Santa Susanna (1597–1603) and Carlo Rainaldi’s of Santa Maria in Campitelli (1662–1675) are also based on della Porta’s design. In the Netherlands, Saint Michael in Louvain (1650–1671), by Willem Hesius, and Saint Charles Borromeo in Antwerp (fin. 1623; formerly Saint Ignatius), by Pieter Huyssens, feature similar architectural characteristics. A French example is Jacques Lemercier’s Church of the Sorbonne, Paris (beg. 1635).
Overview
Soon two tendencies developed. Gian Lorenzo Bernini favored classicism, as his façade of Santa Bibiana in Rome (1624–1626) and his Church of Santa Maria dell’ Assunzione in Ariccia (1662–1664) demonstrate. The first is articulated with Doric pilasters and pediment, while the second is based on the Roman Pantheon in its circular plan, massive dome with oculus, and entrance portico. Here Bernini experimented with concave and convex forms, which he would repeat with greater theatricality in the Saint Peter’s Piazza (1656–1667), where the colonnade seems as the all-embracing arms of the Church. Francesco Borromini preferred a vocabulary that combined classical and fantasy elements, resulting in biomorphic structures that seemingly expand and contract, such as his San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, Rome (1638–1641, façade 1665–1676). In this church, the plan is based on two equilateral undulating triangles that symbolically reference the emblem of the Trinitarians, Borromini’s patrons. Ovals and crosses permeate the interior, culminating in a dome coffered with various complex geometric designs that diminish in size as they ascend. Toward the end of the seventeenth century, Guarino Guarini was the most notable Italian architect. His Church of San Lorenzo (1666–1687) reflects Borromini’s influence in its undulations and complex dome. Guarini’s dome, which is composed of sixteen ribs that intersect to form an eight-pointed star, also looked to Moorish prototypes he studied in Spain.
Foreign architects traveled to Italy to view the works of these masters and spread their newly acquired knowledge in their respective countries. In France, Salomon De Brosse built the Luxembourg Palace for Queen Marie de’ Medici (beg. 1615), a structure that melds the typical French chateâu design with Italian elements, particularly the doubled columns and pilasters and rustications throughout, and the broken segmented pediment of the central bay. Early in his career François Mansart designed two churches in Paris, the Church of the Feuillants (1623–1624) and Sainte Marie de la Visitation (1632–1634), in which he used the classical orders, pediments, and other such classical elements, combined with curvilinear chapels, oval domes, and scrolls. Louis le Vau built Vaux-le-Vicomte, a structure with an oval garden façade that features a centered triple triumphal arch motif on both the lower and upper stories, and a massive dome and lantern. The outer pavilions move forward and are capped by heavily pitched roofs. The court façade features a triple-arched portico from which protrudes two concave arms.
In England, Inigo Jones was the first to use the classical architectural vocabulary. In 1615, after a visit to Italy, he received the commission to build for Anne of Denmark the Queen’s House in Greenwich (fin. 1635). The structure, composed of two equal squares connected by a covered bridge, utilized a Palladian vocabulary, mathematical proportions, and emphasis on symmetry. The building also borrows design elements from the Villa Medici at Poggio a Caiano built for Lorenzo "the Magnificent" de’ Medici in the late fifteenth century by Giuliano da Sangallo. Inigo’s Banqueting House in Whitehall Palace, London (1619–1622), the reception hall for foreign dignitaries and official ceremonies, was inspired by Andrea Palladio’s Palazzo Thiene, illustrated in the Quattro Libri, and the Basilica in Vincenza, the Venetian architect’s reinterpretation of an ancient basilican plan as described by the ancient Roman engineer Vitruvius. The other major figure of British baroque architecture was Sir Christopher Wren, whose most notable commission was the design of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London (1676–1710). This is a church with a longitudinal plan and a dome that sits on a tall drum. The transept arms are semicircular and include a Palladian screen of columns. In the exterior, Wren used doubled pilasters on both the lower and upper stories. A peristyle surrounds the drum of the dome, a feature inspired by Donato Bramante’s Tempietto in Rome. The façade exhibits a classic simplicity that evidences Wren’s interest in Italian Renaissance architecture, though the two towers, with their curvilinear movements and perforations, are decidedly baroque.
In the Netherlands, Jacob van Campen collaborated with Constantine Huygens to build the Mauritshuis in the Hague (1633–1644), a representative of Dutch classicism. This was the home of Johan Maurits of Nassau-Siegen, the Dutch governor of Brazil. The palatial structure utilizes a Dutch classicist style again inspired by Palladio’s architecture. It is essentially a cube with a pitched roof, articulated with colossal Ionic pilasters. The windows in the lower story are capped by lintels, while those in the upper story feature pediments. Festoons occupy the spaces below the upper windows. The main entrance is emphasized by a large pediment filled with applied sculpture that extends the length of the three central bays. The building’s plan is symmetrical, with the same number of rooms at each level disposed at either side of a central vestibule—a Palladian approach to palace construction. Originally, the great hall in the upper story featured a dome surrounded by a walkway that, unfortunately, was lost to fire in 1704.
Baroque art was superseded by the rococo style of the eighteenth century. The organic forms that Borromini, Guarini and others applied to architecture evolved into a highly ornate and textured type, best exemplified by German structures such as the Wieskirche designed by Dominikus Zimmermann and the Church of Ottobeuren by Simpert Kramer and Johann Michael Fischer, both in Bavaria.
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