Baroque Slides You Must Know

BerniniThe Baldacchino1624bronze, partly giltSt. Peter’s, Vatican

BerniniSaint Teresa of Avila in Ecstasy 1647-52 marbleCappella Cornaro, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome

This sculpture represents Saint Teresa as she has a vision.

Portal of the Hospicio de San FernandoPerdo de Ribera1722Madrid

DavidBernini1623-1624marble

Bernini’s David is considered an excellent example of Baroque sculpture, because the extremely energized figure of David seems to be about to attack Goliath, thereby drawing the viewer into the action of the “frame.”

Bernini’s David is considered an excellent example of Baroque sculpture, because David’s pose seems to press into the viewer’s space and forces the viewer to be an actual spectator in David battle against Goliath.

Louis XIV1701Hyacinthe Rigaudthe Sun King, age 63—he succeeded to the crown at age five; he died when he was 77. He was king for seventy-two years.

How has power been constructed through this image?Hints: ermine, sword, classical architecture, crwon, fluer-de-lis, gaze of the subject...

How has the subject’s gender been constructed—emphasized? What seems contradictory to our contemporary eye?Hints: high-heeled shoes, stockings, long luxuriant locks, femininized pose of the lower-half of his body...

Palais de Versailles

Louis Le Vau Jules Hardouin-Mansart 1668-85Andre Le Notre designed the gardens.

See the official website: en.chateauversailles.fr

Hall of Mirrors

Do you remember the Treaty of Versailles that formally ended WWI? The treaty was signed in this room on 29 June 1919. Think of that moment as the beginning of WWII.

Plan of Palais de VersaillesLouis Le Vau and Jules Hardouin-Mansart 1668-85

Andre Le Notre designed the gardens.

Sick BacchusCaravaggio1593oil on canvas

This early work breaks all the rules.Who is Bacchus?

Boy Bitten by a LizardCaravaggio1594oil on canvas

This early work is a demonstration of virtuosity.What is Caravaggio proving that he can “do” as a painter?What do you notice?

DavidCaravaggio1609-10oil on canvas

The head of Goliath is a self-portrait of Caravaggio.

The Calling of St. MatthewCaravaggio1599-1600oil on canvasContarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome

Magdalen with the Smoking FlameGeorge de La Tourc. 1640oil on canvas

Christ in the Carpenter's ShopGeorge de La Tour1645oil on canvas

The Water Seller of SevilleDiego Velázquez 1623 oil on canvas

The Surrender at Breda (The Lances) Diego Velázquez 1634-35 oil on canvas

The most important fortress in the southern Netherlands was Breda in Brabant.Velázquez represents Spinola (Philip IV’s Spanish commander) as having dismounted from his horse to meet the Dutch commander, Justinus of Nassau, on equal footing. Instead of accepting the token of surrender, he places a hand on the Dutchman's shoulder, offering a consolation of one soldier to another.

Las Meninas or The Family of Philip IVDiego Velázquez 1656-1657 oil on canvas

The Rokeby Venus or The Toliet of Venus ca. 1650

Jan Vermeer Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window1657

Jan Vermeer Woman Holding a Balancec. 1664

Jan Vermeer The Milkmaidca. 1658

Jan Vermeer A Woman Asleep at Table1657

Jan Vermeer Girl with Pearl Earringca. 1665

Jan Vermeer View of Delft 1659-1660

Jan Vermeer The Little Street1657-58

Jan Vermeer The Art of Paintingca. 1665-1667

Self-PortraitRembrandt1659oil on canvas

Portrait of Saskia with FlowerRembrandt1641oil on canvas

Bathsheba at Her BathRembrandt1654 oil on canvas

The Jewish Bride Rembrandt c. 1665 oil on canvas

RembrandtSelf-Portrait1639

RembrandtThe Sacrifice of Isaac1655

Baroque Art: Types of Paintings•religious images

•portraits

•history paintings

•still lifes

•genre* (scenes from every day life)

* Genre painting is a fairly new development at the end of the 16th century (1580’s).

Religious Images

EntombmentCaravaggio1603-1604oil on canvas

What makes this image a “Baroque” work?

•This is an open composition in which elements are seem to move diagonally in space.•Caravaggio has used rich colors and dramatic contrasts of light and dark.•This work demonstrates tenebrism: a technique in which forms emerge from a dark background into a strong light that often falls from a single source outside the painting.•Caravaggio has attempted to depict this scene with as much realism as possible.

Portraits

Catharina Hooft and Her NurseFrans Hals1620oil on canvas

What makes this portrait a “Baroque” work?

•Hals has used a loose, free technique; the viewer can see the evidence of his brushwork—of the movement of the brush as it constructs the image on the two-dimensional plane of the canvas.

•Hals has used a dramatic contrast of light and dark; the two figures emerge from a dark background into a strong light. •Hals has attempted to portray the two individuals as realistically as possible; note the careful depiction of textures.

History Paintin

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The Surrender at Breda (The Lances) Diego Velázquez 1634-35 oil on canvas

The most important fortress in the southern Netherlands was Breda in Brabant.Velázquez represents Spinola (Philip IV’s Spanish commander) as having dismounted from his horse to meet the Dutch commander, Justinus of Nassau, on equal footing. Instead of accepting the token of surrender, he places a hand on the Dutchman's shoulder, offering a consolation of one soldier to another.

Still Lifes

Still Life with FlowersRachel Ruysch1716oil on canvas

Nota bene: While the artist is extremely invested in created a naturalistic representation of the flowers, this image was not made from “life”—Ruysch has created a composite of different flowers. She would make sketches of different flowers and fruits and then “assemble” the individual images in one still life.

Notice the tulip at the upper center of the image. Tulip mania or tulipomania was a period in the Dutch Golden Age—which roughly speaking spanned the 17th century—during which contract prices for bulbs of the recently introduced tulip reached extraordinarily high levels and then suddenly collapsed. At the peak of tulip mania, in February 1637, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman. It is generally considered the first recorded speculative bubble. Tulips were imported first from the Ottoman Empire during the reign of our friend Suleyman the Magnificent—remember his tughra?

Genre

Woman Holding a BalanceJan Vermeerc. 1664oil on canvas

Vanitas Theme: the transitory nature of life (life is brief); the woman is weighing the value of “something;” notice the Last Judgment painting behind her?; notice the light that illuminates her hands and forehead?

Arnolfini Portrait Jan van Eyck1434

portrait, of course…genre too?even a still life?

Merode Altarpiece Robert Campin 1425-1428

a religious image of course…portrait of the patrons on the left and even the artist…right?genre as well?even a still life, perhaps?