Italian Baroque interior design
Encyclopedia
Italian Baroque interior design refers to high-style furnishing and interior decorating carried out in Italy
during the Baroque period, which lasted from the early 17th to the mid 18th century. In provincial areas, Baroque forms such as the clothes-press or armadio continued to be made into the 19th century.
was the seat of an extremely powerful and influential papacy which were struggling with the advent of Protestantism
. As a response to the Protestant Reformation
, the Curia started the Counter-Reformation
, (after the Council of Trent
), a period in which the church's policies and influence abroad would be strengthened. Due to this Catholic Reformation, popes in Rome hired several architects, painters and interior designers to re-decorate the city and improve its public decorum, creating several new palaces and churches, and re-designing the interiors of several papal buildings. Decorations were richer and more grandiose than those of the Renaissance
, and this movement evolved into the Baroque
, which later spread across the whole of Italy and later Europe
.
To accord with these new architectural styles, new furnishing styles also emerged, for which architects even as pre-eminent as Bernini, were called upon to provide designs. In his Opus architectonicum Borromini fully described the furniture he designed for the Chiesa Nova, including the reused priests' bookcases, and Carlo Fontana
was called upon shortly after 1692 to design the support for a porphyry
tavola, or table-slab, for the bapistry of St Peter's; it was enriched with bronze ornaments and the Pignatelli arms of Pope Innocent XI
. Architects had been called upon since the days of Buontalenti to design such marble or pietra dura
tables on bases for the centers of grand spaces.
Since this was an age where learning and patronage of the arts were considered desirable pursuits for nobles, the bookcase came out of the private studiolo to furnish state apartments as an object of display. Among new forms of furniture in parade apartments, free-standing bookcase
s were no longer built into the structure of rooms. Lavish bookcases started to be made, often with gilded marble columns and intricate designs.
Roman carvers' shops outshone the more modest craft of cabinetmaking, as demanding commissions overseen by architects for carved decors, frames, altar candlestands, confessionals and pulpits came in a steady stream for the furnishings of churches and semi-public chapels. In secular apartments of parade, richly carved, painted and gilded frames came from the same shops. Carved frames and case furniture had come to rival the former primacy of textiles during the course of the 16th century. Baroque objects were grand in scale in proportion to the interiors they occupied, and would be ornamented with cartouche
s, swags and drops of boldly-scaled fruits and flowers, open scrollwork and carvings of human figures, which swarmed over and all but effaced the tectonic forms that supported them which made them look majestic and royal in appearance.
The fresco
ed galleries of the city's many palazzi were lined with elaborate console tables set against the piers
and between the windows. In ceilings the new popular style of frescoing emerged known as the quadratura from its elaborate framing, was reflected in the framing of large looking-glasses, assembled fromsix to eighteen panes of Venetian mirror-glass, themselves being made in larger dimensions than ever.
In Florence
, grand cabinets known as stippone (plural:stipponi) began to be produced in the ducal workshops, thought to have been inspired from Augsburg
cabinets. They had many shells and carved foliages, and were decorated with expensive materials, such as gilt bronze, ebony and pietra dura. Around 1667, Leonardo van der Vinne, a well-known cabinet maker from the Low Countries
became part of the ducal workshops.
In Genoa
, grand console tables supporting huge marble slabs on carved gilt bases began to be made. The offer of an armchair
continued to convey elite status: inventories record a single one or a pair in rooms where the seating otherwise was on armless side-chairs, sgabelli
of traditional construction— now enriched with bold sculpture— and stool
s. Chairs made by the Genoese were made with rich fabrics, often silk or velvet, to accord with the hangings and were often gilded with gold or silver.
After the mid-17th century, the state bed also came to provide the expected climax of the sequence of rooms in a Baroque apartment, following precedents established in France. Late-17th century Italian beds were usually grand in scale, often with elaborate wooden backs and fabric drapes. They were usually similar in style throughout the nation, but the textiles varied by region.
Italian baroque furnishing also had considerable Eastern influences. Venetians, who at the time still held a vast sea empire, often imported rich fabrics and materials from other nations to enrich their furniture with some eastern influences. Their furniture was mainly sumptuous and luxurious, and included rich silks and green and gold lacquer.
However, in Italy, there were considerable differences in the interior design of a grand palazzo than that of a normal house. Palazzi were usually lavish and sumptuous, whilst middle-class town/country houses were usually far plainer, with simple wooden beds, x-framed chairs and big cassoni, or chests.
is an Italian chest; cassoni usually had a raised lid, often decorated with carved leaves and/or figures. Cassoni found in rich people's houses were usually far more grand and elaborate, even though they were nearly always wooden, however more middle-class families' chests were simpler and still retained some Mannerist/Renaissance
features, such as paw feet, strapwork and segmented panels.
Quadratura, a term which was introduced in the 17th century and is also normally used in English, became popular with Baroque artists. Although it can also refer to the "opening up" of walls through architectural illusion, the term is most-commonly associated with Italian ceiling painting. Unlike other trompe-l'oeil techniques or precedent di sotto in sù ceiling decorations, which often rely on intuitive artistic approaches to deception, quadratura is directly tied to 17th-century theories of perspective and the representation of architectural space. Due to its reliance on perspective theory, it more fully unites architecture, painting and sculpture and gives a more overwhelming impression of illusionism than earlier examples.
The artist would paint a feigned architecture in perspective on a flat or barrel-vaulted ceiling in such a way that it seems to continue the existing architecture. The perspective of this illusion is centered towards one focal point. The steep foreshortening of the figures, the painted walls and pillars, creates an illusion of deep recession, heavenly sphere or even an open sky. Paintings on ceilings could, for example, simulate statues in niches or openings revealing the sky.
Quadratura may also employ other illusionistic painting techniques
,such as anamorphosis
.
Examples of illusionistic painting include:
Other examples were by Paolo Veronese
at Villa Rotonda in Vicenza
and Baldassare Peruzzi
in the Villa Farnesina
of Rome.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
during the Baroque period, which lasted from the early 17th to the mid 18th century. In provincial areas, Baroque forms such as the clothes-press or armadio continued to be made into the 19th century.
History, influences and background
In the late 16th century, RomeRome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
was the seat of an extremely powerful and influential papacy which were struggling with the advent of Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. As a response to the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, the Curia started the Counter-Reformation
Counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation was the period of Catholic revival beginning with the Council of Trent and ending at the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648 as a response to the Protestant Reformation.The Counter-Reformation was a comprehensive effort, composed of four major elements:#Ecclesiastical or...
, (after the Council of Trent
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. It convened in Trent between December 13, 1545, and December 4, 1563 in twenty-five sessions for three periods...
), a period in which the church's policies and influence abroad would be strengthened. Due to this Catholic Reformation, popes in Rome hired several architects, painters and interior designers to re-decorate the city and improve its public decorum, creating several new palaces and churches, and re-designing the interiors of several papal buildings. Decorations were richer and more grandiose than those of the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
, and this movement evolved into the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
, which later spread across the whole of Italy and later Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
To accord with these new architectural styles, new furnishing styles also emerged, for which architects even as pre-eminent as Bernini, were called upon to provide designs. In his Opus architectonicum Borromini fully described the furniture he designed for the Chiesa Nova, including the reused priests' bookcases, and Carlo Fontana
Carlo Fontana
Carlo Fontana was an Italian architect, who was in part responsible for the classicizing direction taken by Late Baroque Roman architecture.-Biography:...
was called upon shortly after 1692 to design the support for a porphyry
Porphyry (geology)
Porphyry is a variety of igneous rock consisting of large-grained crystals, such as feldspar or quartz, dispersed in a fine-grained feldspathic matrix or groundmass. The larger crystals are called phenocrysts...
tavola, or table-slab, for the bapistry of St Peter's; it was enriched with bronze ornaments and the Pignatelli arms of Pope Innocent XI
Pope Innocent XI
Blessed Pope Innocent XI , born Benedetto Odescalchi, was Pope from 1676 to 1689.-Early life:Benedetto Odescalchi was born at Como in 1611 , the son of a Como nobleman, Livio Odescalchi, and Paola Castelli Giovanelli from Gandino...
. Architects had been called upon since the days of Buontalenti to design such marble or pietra dura
Pietra dura
Pietra dura or pietre dure , called parchin kari in South Asia, is a term for the technique of using cut and fitted, highly-polished colored stones to create images. It is considered a decorative art...
tables on bases for the centers of grand spaces.
Since this was an age where learning and patronage of the arts were considered desirable pursuits for nobles, the bookcase came out of the private studiolo to furnish state apartments as an object of display. Among new forms of furniture in parade apartments, free-standing bookcase
Bookcase
A bookcase, or bookshelf, is a piece of furniture, almost always with horizontal shelves, used to store books. A bookcase consists of a unit including two or more shelves which may not all be used to contain books or other printed materials. Shelves may be fixed or adjustable to different positions...
s were no longer built into the structure of rooms. Lavish bookcases started to be made, often with gilded marble columns and intricate designs.
Roman carvers' shops outshone the more modest craft of cabinetmaking, as demanding commissions overseen by architects for carved decors, frames, altar candlestands, confessionals and pulpits came in a steady stream for the furnishings of churches and semi-public chapels. In secular apartments of parade, richly carved, painted and gilded frames came from the same shops. Carved frames and case furniture had come to rival the former primacy of textiles during the course of the 16th century. Baroque objects were grand in scale in proportion to the interiors they occupied, and would be ornamented with cartouche
Cartouche
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a cartouche is an ellipse with a horizontal line at one end, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name, coming into use during the beginning of the Fourth Dynasty under Pharaoh Sneferu, replacing the earlier serekh...
s, swags and drops of boldly-scaled fruits and flowers, open scrollwork and carvings of human figures, which swarmed over and all but effaced the tectonic forms that supported them which made them look majestic and royal in appearance.
The fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
ed galleries of the city's many palazzi were lined with elaborate console tables set against the piers
Pier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
and between the windows. In ceilings the new popular style of frescoing emerged known as the quadratura from its elaborate framing, was reflected in the framing of large looking-glasses, assembled fromsix to eighteen panes of Venetian mirror-glass, themselves being made in larger dimensions than ever.
In Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, grand cabinets known as stippone (plural:stipponi) began to be produced in the ducal workshops, thought to have been inspired from Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
cabinets. They had many shells and carved foliages, and were decorated with expensive materials, such as gilt bronze, ebony and pietra dura. Around 1667, Leonardo van der Vinne, a well-known cabinet maker from the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
became part of the ducal workshops.
In Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, grand console tables supporting huge marble slabs on carved gilt bases began to be made. The offer of an armchair
Armchair
An armchair is a chair with arm rests.Armchair may also refer to:*Armchair nanotube, a carbon nanotube with chiral symmetry*Armchair, a sitting sex position*Armchair , a bus operator in London...
continued to convey elite status: inventories record a single one or a pair in rooms where the seating otherwise was on armless side-chairs, sgabelli
Sgabello
A sgabello is an Italian term for a specific type of backstool, moveable seat furniture typical of the Italian Renaissance, when a chair usually signified an armchair, a seat of some hieratic importance...
of traditional construction— now enriched with bold sculpture— and stool
Chair
A chair is a stable, raised surface used to sit on, commonly for use by one person. Chairs are most often supported by four legs and have a back; however, a chair can have three legs or could have a different shape depending on the criteria of the chair specifications. A chair without a back or...
s. Chairs made by the Genoese were made with rich fabrics, often silk or velvet, to accord with the hangings and were often gilded with gold or silver.
After the mid-17th century, the state bed also came to provide the expected climax of the sequence of rooms in a Baroque apartment, following precedents established in France. Late-17th century Italian beds were usually grand in scale, often with elaborate wooden backs and fabric drapes. They were usually similar in style throughout the nation, but the textiles varied by region.
Italian baroque furnishing also had considerable Eastern influences. Venetians, who at the time still held a vast sea empire, often imported rich fabrics and materials from other nations to enrich their furniture with some eastern influences. Their furniture was mainly sumptuous and luxurious, and included rich silks and green and gold lacquer.
However, in Italy, there were considerable differences in the interior design of a grand palazzo than that of a normal house. Palazzi were usually lavish and sumptuous, whilst middle-class town/country houses were usually far plainer, with simple wooden beds, x-framed chairs and big cassoni, or chests.
Gilded frames
Gilded frames were very frequently used in paintings and mirrors, and usually consisted of several cartouches, carved flowers and sculptural figures.Cassoni
A cassoneCassone
Among furniture in Italy, a cassone or marriage chest is a rich and showy type of chest, which may be inlaid or carved, prepared with gesso ground then painted and gilded. The cassone was one of the trophy furnishings of rich merchants and aristocrats in Italian culture, from the Late Middle Ages...
is an Italian chest; cassoni usually had a raised lid, often decorated with carved leaves and/or figures. Cassoni found in rich people's houses were usually far more grand and elaborate, even though they were nearly always wooden, however more middle-class families' chests were simpler and still retained some Mannerist/Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
features, such as paw feet, strapwork and segmented panels.
(Florentine) Console tables
Florentine Console tables were often richly decorated and sumptuous. The carved wood was often gilded in gold or bronze, and the table legs were mainly caryatids or muscular figures, made to look as if they were holding the marble slab on top. Most of their themes were copied or nearly identical to their Roman counterparts, but the Florentines became famous for these designs.(Florentine) Cabinet
Florentine cabinets were usually very similar to those of the Renaissance in essence, except a few changes. Segments and strapwork was still used, however, it was also included new features such as pilasters, arched panels and pietra dura designs. Often religious or mythological themes were drawn inside the panels to add decoration to the object.Lion Commode
Lion commodes were often made of walnut or oak, pearl, jewels and ivory, which made fantastical and allegorical designs. They were often decorated with angels, animals, leaves, saints and flowers. They were called lion commodes specifically due to their lion-shaped feet at the bottom of the drawer.Tables
Tables varied greatly during the Baroque period, but were often made of gilded wood, oak or walnut. Large tables were long, rich and sumptuous, whilst smaller ones were usually ornate and geometric.Quadratura
The artist would paint a feigned architecture in perspective on a flat or barrel-vaulted ceiling in such a way that it seems to continue the existing architecture. The perspective of this illusion is centered towards one focal point. The steep foreshortening of the figures, the painted walls and pillars, creates an illusion of deep recession, heavenly sphere or even an open sky. Paintings on ceilings could, for example, simulate statues in niches or openings revealing the sky.
Quadratura may also employ other illusionistic painting techniques
Illusionism (art)
For the performing art of magic, see Magic Illusionism in art history means either the artistic tradition in which artists create a work of art that appears to share the physical space with the viewer., or more broadly the attempt to represent physical appearances precisely - also called mimesis...
,such as anamorphosis
Anamorphosis
Anamorphosis or anamorphism may refer to any of the following:*Anamorphosis, in art, the representation of an object as seen, for instance, altered by reflection in a mirror...
.
Examples of illusionistic painting include:
- Andrea PozzoAndrea PozzoAndrea Pozzo was an Italian Jesuit Brother, Baroque painter and architect, decorator, stage designer, and art theoretician. He was best known for his grandiose frescoes using illusionistic technique called quadratura, in which architecture and fancy are intermixed...
at San IgnazioSant'IgnazioThe Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola at Campus Martius is Roman Catholic titular church dedicated to Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit order, located in Rome, Italy...
in Rome and the Jesuit church in Vienna. He wrote the standard theoretical work of his artistic ideas in the two volumes of : Perspectiva pictorum et architectorum Andreae Putei a societate Jesu (Rome, 1693–1700). - Pietro da CortonaPietro da CortonaPietro da Cortona, by the name of Pietro Berrettini, born Pietro Berrettini da Cortona, was the leading Italian Baroque painter of his time and also one of the key architects in the emergence of Roman Baroque architecture. He was also an important decorator...
at the Palazzo BarberiniPalazzo BarberiniPalazzo Barberini is a palace in Rome, facing the piazza of the same name in Rione Trevi and is home to the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica.-History:...
, - Gianbattista Tiepolo in the Ca' RezzonicoCa' RezzonicoCa' Rezzonico is a palazzo on the Grand Canal in Venice. Today it is a public museum dedicated to 18th century Venice. - Design :Ca' Rezzonico stands on the right bank of the canal, at the point where it is joined by the Rio di San Barnaba. The site was previously occupied by two houses...
in Venice, Villa Pisani at StraVilla PisaniVilla Pisani is the name shared by a number of villas commissioned by the patrician Pisani family of Venice. However, Villa Pisani usually refers to a large, late baroque villa at Stra on the mainland of the Veneto, northern Italy. It was begun in the early 18th century for Alvise Pisani, the most...
, and the throne room at the Royal Palace of MadridRoyal Palace of MadridThe Palacio Real de Madrid is the official residence of the King of Spain in the city of Madrid, but it is only used for state ceremonies. King Juan Carlos and the Royal Family do not reside in the palace, choosing instead the more modest Palacio de la Zarzuela on the outskirts of Madrid...
.
Other examples were by Paolo Veronese
Paolo Veronese
Paolo Veronese was an Italian painter of the Renaissance in Venice, famous for paintings such as The Wedding at Cana and The Feast in the House of Levi...
at Villa Rotonda in Vicenza
Vicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
and Baldassare Peruzzi
Baldassare Peruzzi
Baldassare Tommaso Peruzzi was an Italian architect and painter, born in a small town near Siena and died in Rome. He worked for many years, beginning in 1520, under Bramante, Raphael, and later Sangallo during the erection of the new St. Peter's...
in the Villa Farnesina
Villa Farnesina
The Villa Farnesina is a Renaissance suburban villa in the Via della Lungara, in the district of Trastevere in Rome, central Italy.The villa was built for Agostino Chigi, a rich Sienese banker and the treasurer of Pope Julius II. Between 1506–1510, the Sienese artist and pupil of Bramante,...
of Rome.