Jillian Norris

Influence of the Baroque Style on Modern Culture

               Ever since I was really young I have always felt a strong pull towards art in any form. I could read and appreciate a good story, I would notice all of the intricate details on old buildings, and I could understand the message of a painting or drawing pretty well for a kid. As I got older, my attraction towards art only grew, but I never took the time to actually study its different styles. This is why I was immediately drawn to the baroque and plain styles of art, architecture, and literature that we began learning about in class. I was actually a bit disappointed when we had to stop covering the topic and move on to other matters in the course, so I am taking the opportunity now to conduct my own research. In this first research post, I will only be covering baroque and will continue with plain style in my second research post. My main curiosity about this topic was just wanting to learn more about the major contributors of each style, aside from the ones covered in class, so I have gathered some information on major artists, authors, and architectural structures.
               The first major influence on baroque style comes from an Italian artist named Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. The name might not ring any bells for most people, but his contributions of Baroque Style paintings are world famous and are still a big influence to modern artists. One of his most famous paintings is Supper at Emmaus, and you don't have to take more than a quick glance at it to see what makes it a baroque painting. The painting depicts Jesus at a table laden with food and surrounded by two disciples and an inn-keeper.  The lighting technique and the use of shadows is probably the most notable characteristic that Caravaggio used in this painting. He uses light and darkness in extreme contrast to each other in order to create a more dramatic effect. In fact, he also uses light to cast Jesus into the direct path of the light and cast all others into the shadows, illuminating the religious passion as the subject of the piece. Supper at Emmaus is just one of the many examples of Caravaggio's contributions to the baroque style, but what a lot of people don't realize is that he was one of the few artists who really made contrasting light a staple for baroque characteristics. This technique is actually called "Chiaroscuro" which according to the National Gallery of London "literally means 'light-dark'. In paintings the description refers to clear tonal contrasts which are often used to suggest the volume and modelling of the subjects depicted". In an article entitled Light and Dark in Caravaggio's "Supper at Emmaus"  the author regards Caravaggio's use of Chiaroscuro as" the distinguishing feature of his coloring". The article goes on to discuss how his use of Chiaruscuro can be seen as an influence in other such paintings done by Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci. Caravaggio's technique of Chiaroscuro is not one that we stop to consider very often, yet it is one that we see all the time because it has become such a huge influence on the world of art.
               Similar to its use in art, baroque architecture is very well known for its boldness and the sense of grandeur that it holds. It is usually very easy to spot a piece of baroque architecture because they tend to have very sharp, dramatic angles, light and dark interplay, and very intricate details covering almost any available surface! In class we looked at several examples of baroque style structures, particularly Roman Catholic cathedrals because they are very well-known to be constructed in the baroque, but you can also find baroque buildings in chateaux (country mansions) which are very prominent in France. While I was researching this particular area of baroque history, I discovered many lovely artists such as Francesco Borromini and Gianlorenzo Bernini (which we discussed in class), but I decided that I wanted to focus on an architect named Camillo-Guarino Guarini. Guarini was an Italian architect, priest, and theologian whose work in architecture made him a major influence for future baroque architects. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, "Guarini built (or furnished designs for) at least six churches and chapels, five palaces, and a city gate; published six books, two on architecture and four on mathematics and astronomy; and sent palace designs to the duke of Bavaria and the margrave of Baden." Obviously, Guarini worked tirelessly to make a name for himself in the world of architecture and mathematics, and he ended up being very successful in his work. In fact, Coventry Evening Telegraph calls Guarini's Palazzo Carignano "one of Italy's most elegant baroque buildings" and the Encyclopedia Britannica refers to it as Guarini's masterpiece. When looking at the building it is easy to see what makes it a very baroque piece: the curvature of the domed walls forces the building to create light and dark interplay by creating shadows in the recessions, the pillars and window frames have been adorned with intricate detail, and the sheer magnitude of the building emits an essence of grandeur and boldness. This is my favorite of Guarini's designs, although he has created several other beautiful pieces that I really enjoyed investigating.
               Finally, whereas art and architecture have very obvious physical characteristics of baroque style, literature can be a bit more difficult to identify. It's not like you can just go to your local Barnes & Noble, pick a book off the shelf, look at it for a moment and say "Yup, this is definitely baroque". Because of this, I had a bit harder of a time finding baroque authors that we did not cover in class. However, according to several websites that I visited, John Milton's Paradise Lost can be considered literature to be written in the baroque style. I was a bit surprised to find this out, although I'm not sure why because when you think about it Paradise Lost really does fit the bill when it comes to baroque style. For example, in the book there is a distinct use of good vs. evil (Heaven vs. Hell and God vs. Satan), which is a classic theme in baroque literature. In fact, he even directly uses light and darkness to depict his characters by describing God's angels as light and the devil as darkness. Also, the pure imagination that was put into this book is enough to deem it a baroque piece of literature. It is in no way plain, but instead relies on interesting characters and elements of fantasy to give a fictitious interpretation of the Garden of Eden story. Finally, in an article entitled Milton and the Baroque the author discusses how the theme of dramatic change is also prominent baroque characteristic in Paradise Lost. Specifically he mentions "how quickly the devils are turned into bees" and "Paradise itself is metamorphosed into 'an island salt and bare' for whales to frequent". All of these things and more combine to create a perfect example of baroque literature, once you stop to consider them. For me, I hadn't picked up a copy of this book since high school and back then I definitely did not appreciate the book for the epic poem that it was, so it was really fun for me to be able to explore it in a new way. 
               Doing this research post was so much fun for me because I was able to cover a topic that I enjoyed learning about but wasn't very well versed in to begin with. I have learned to look at paintings in a new way, recognize that each little curve or archway in a structure has a purpose, and analyze literature on a level that I previously could not. I have also learned that the baroque style that originated hundreds of years ago is still prevalent today because it has had such a huge influence on the art and architecture community. Much and more can be learned about the different artistic styles that have played a part to create the world around us, which is why in my next research post I would like to continue along the same lines as this one and investigate the plain style.

References

"Chiaroscuro." The National Gallery. Web. Mar.-Apr. 2012. 

"Guarino Guarini." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Hollingon, Michael. "Milton And The Baroque." English Studies 60.2 (1979): 138. Academic Search Complete. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Janis, Bell C. "Light and Color in Caravaggio's "Supper at Emmaus"" Artibus Et Historiae16.31 (1995): 141. Print.

"THE MONDAY SUPPLEMENT: FAMILY: WHAT'S IN STORE… FIVE MUST-SEE ATTRACTIONS." Coventry Evening Telegraph. (March 3, 2003 , Monday ): 296 words. LexisNexis Academic. Web. Date Accessed: 2012/03/28.