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Gianlorenzo Bernini Research Paper

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Baroque is a style of art that was influenced by the papacy in Rome, with sculptor and architect Gianlorenzo Bernini behind the rise of the popular period of the style. The view of the Baroque style has changed over time, but during the seventeenth century it was considered as having a dramatic and theatrical essence. Gianlorenzo Bernini was a prodigal architect and sculptor by whom the Roman papacy employed for their empire. He is considered one of the greatest sculptors in the seventeenth century as his many masterpieces have artistically influenced an entire age of an empire. Gianlorenzo Bernini captured the characteristics of the Baroque in his art as he achieved theatrical effects by bringing together various media. The Baroque period came to be through the influences of religion and politics. The Vatican in Rome at the time of the Baroque was challenged by the rise of the Protestant reformation as it grew more powerful and larger in size. This threatened the political power and religious authority of the Vatican. Certain measures had to be taken to ensure that Rome would be the most culturally magnificent and the most …show more content…

He was born in Naples, Italy, and trained with his sculptor of a father. Bernini outdid his predecessor Michelangelo by serving seven popes throughout half a century (Getlein 408). His prodigal work included excelling on the portrait bust, such as the bust of the wife of his assistant, with whom he had an affair (Getlein 408). As it is not customary to live this lifestyle and also be employed by the Roman Catholic Church, Pop Urban VIII advised the artist to marry (408). Bernini lived the remainder of his life in Rome, and died when he was in his eighties. The influence this one man had on the style of an entire empire in outstanding, as his work epitomizes the Baroque

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