Baroque Art

Neuman, Robert. Baroque and Rococo Art and Architecture. Pearson, 2013.

• This art history textbook is an ideal resource for neophytes to consult for a survey of the Baroque period. The first half provides an exceptional introduction to the Baroque, as well as information on specific aspects of the tradition, including bel composto, the Spanish Golden Age, architecture, the human figure, French painting and prints, and the sacred and the secular in painting. Neuman also provides analysis of the most significant monuments produced during the period.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 N48 2013

Careri, Giovanni. Baroques. Translated by Alexandra Bonfante-Warren, Princeton UP, 2003.

• Cleverly arranged by theme, this book combines Ferrante Ferranti’s beautiful color photographs with a captivating prose account of the Baroque period; Careri’s explanation of the Baroque art movement is exceptional. Just as the Baroque art movement spanned distant continents, so too does this book. From Italy to Russia, Portugal to Latin America, this book provides analyses of Baroque painting, sculpture, and architecture on the basis of each individual piece’s emotional and perceptual significance and its intellectual value.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 C3613 2003

Bazin, Germain. The Baroque: Principles, Styles, Modes, Themes. Translated by Pat Wardroper, Thames and Hudson, 1968.

• This volume is an erudite and insightful survey of the Baroque art movement. Bazin begins with a discussion of the principles that helped form the culture of the period, from political and cultural patterns to ethics and aesthetics. He then moves on to exploring the stylistic traditions that gave rise to the Baroque before examining the subject of study and its modes and themes. The text is accompanied by more than four hundred illustrations, which capture the variety of Baroque art of the Netherlands, Norway, Italy, the British Isles, Russia, and the Americas.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 B313

Bussagli, Marco and Mattia Reiche. Baroque & Rococo. Translated by Patrick McKeown, Sterling, 2009.

• The first half of this volume is dedicated to the Baroque and is succinct yet edifying and fascinating. The authors define the term “baroque,” provide examples of artworks (i.e. sculpture, painting, architecture, portraiture, furniture, etc.), and explain the significance of each piece. They also provide a list of leading figures in the Baroque era, featuring page numbers of where readers can locate examples of each figure’s most notable works. This is an exceptional introduction to the Baroque period.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 B8713 2009

Martin, John Rupert. Baroque. Harper & Row, 1977.

• In his introductory text, Martin explores a variety of essential Baroque themes, including naturalism, allegory, scriptural interpretation, the sensualization of experience, and the use of coextensive space. Martin’s insightful explanation of these characteristics and illustration annotations help readers understand the style and significance of this particular art movement.

Call Number: N 6415 B3 M37 1977b

Haskell, Francis. Patrons and Painters: A Study in the Relations Between Italian Art and Society in the Age of the Baroque. Yale UP, 1980.

• Haskell provides a unique and invaluable perspective on the Italian art and history of the Baroque period. He combines a survey of the social and economic history of seventeenth and eighteenth century Italy with a survey of the artistic endeavors of the period. Haskell focuses the first section of the book on an in-depth examination of Rome, and largely on the era of Urban VIII’s pontificate, as his pontificate is thought to be the height of an intensive period of art patronage. The remainder of the book focuses on the dispersal of the Baroque tradition from Rome to other parts of Europe, and finally to the decline of the art movement.

Call Number: N 6916 H37 1980

Zirpolo, Lilian H. Historical Dictionary of Baroque Art and Architecture. Scarecrow Press, 2010.

• This dictionary provides biographical information on the historic events that shaped the lives and works of Baroque artists, as well as popular ideologies of the time. Zirpolo states that the text is intended as a reference tool for both art history students and those generally interested in art. Most entries cover specific people and artists, while others refer to the patrons, as well. Zirpolo also includes a chronology, an introduction, and a bibliography, which includes a list of image sources.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 Z57 2010

Earls, Irene. Baroque Art: A Topical Dictionary. Greenwood Press, 1996.

• The purpose of this dictionary is to assist individuals interested in the modes used by artists in Italy and Northern Europe during the 17^th century. This reference source contains basic information about popular themes in the fine and decorative arts during the Baroque period. These entries can be used to provide readers with a basic art history vocabulary to help understand certain topics or for identifying iconographic elements and mythological subjects. The author has also included Bible passages and other references.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 E18 1996

Conti, Flavio. How to Recognize Baroque Art. Penguin Books, 1979.

• This a very brief, easy-to-read survey of the painting, sculpture, and architectural modes of the Baroque period. Conti provides photographs of notable pictures and monuments from the period, as well as outlines of each work of art, which highlight specific features that exemplify Baroque themes.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 C6613 1979

Greene, Alison De Lima. Baroque and Rococo Artists. Woodbine, 1980.

• This is a very brief introduction to the Baroque and Rococo eras and to the most significant artists of both periods. Greene provides biographies of each artist, as well as information on one of their most notable works; she also includes appendices consisting of chronology and bibliographic resources for further reading. This short publication is an ideal introduction for someone looking for a quick-facts survey of the Baroque period.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 G74 1980

Triadó, Juan-Ramón. The Key to Baroque Art. Lerner, 1990.

• Written by an art history professor, this book describes the history and main themes of Baroque art; Triadó analyzes painting, architecture, decorative arts, and sculpture from the period and provides geographic and chronologic information, as well as a succinct history of the artists and contemporaneous society. Triadó also provides an appendix with a glossary of terms and an index of illustrations.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 T7513

Dixon, Susan M., editor. Italian Baroque Art. Blackwell, 2008.

• The essays in this anthology—a mix of classic and modern scholarship—focus on Italian art from 1600-1750; they are intended to supplement coursework on Italian Baroque art and to illustrate for students how the art history discipline has evolved. The essays present new ways of approaching Italian Baroque art and are arranged into broad themes: Appearances; Artistic Practice, Production and Consumption; Meaning: Conceived and Received; and Critique of the Past and the New Science. Each of the four themes are also preceded by an introduction, written by Dixon to summarize the authors’ main points.

Call Number: N 6916 .I83 2008

Hills, Helen, editor. Rethinking the Baroque. Ashgate, 2011.

• The essays in this anthology are written by scholars from a range of disciplines; the authors seek to re-engage with the term “baroque”, to bring it into the forefront of art history scholarship in order to rethink recent theoretical concerns of the Baroque tradition. Hills highlights the fact that the term “Baroque” has been treated in the past as anachronistic with negative connotations; this collection of essays investigates what happens when scholars reconsider the usefulness of the term “Baroque” and allow the tradition to incite new historical interpretation.

Call Number: N 6415 .B3 R48 2011

Harbison, Robert. Reflections on Baroque. The University of Chicago Press, 2000.

• Harbison reinterprets the Baroque tradition and the cultural and political interests that gave rise to it. He traces the origins back to 17^th century mysticism and science, personal features of Michelangelo’s architecture, and the papal wish to restore the power of Rome. He looks at architecture, art, scenography, music, poetry, and literature to examine the Baroque in an innovative way. He also discusses the way Baroque impulse still exists in twenty-first century artistry.

Call Number: NX 451.5 .B3 H37 2000

Wölfflin, Heinrich. Renaissance and Baroque. Translated by Kathrin Simon, Cornell UP, 1966.

• At the time of its publication, Wölfflin’s book was one of the most often cited art history books, even though this edition was the first English translation of the publication. Originally published in Germany in 1888, Wölfflin explores issues with and ideas about the Baroque period that are still being discussed today; he asks the questions: What is the definition of Baroque art? When exactly did the movement begin and how do the Baroque and Renaissance periods relate to one another? Wölfflin treats the Baroque as a historically significant artistic style, which was an uncommon stance to take up until his publication. His epigraph states that the publication is “An investigation into the nature and origin of the Baroque Style in Italy,” a study which sparked the modern discipline of art history.

Call Number: NA 1115 .W613 1966

Hopkins, Andrew and Arnold Witte, editors and translators. The Origins of Baroque Art in Rome. Getty Research Institute, 2010.

• The front matter of the book illuminates Alois Riegl’s influence in the discipline of Italian art history; the editors state that scholars of 16^th and early-17^th century Italian art will be impressed by Riegl’s text, if they have not yet read it. Contemporary scholarship is included, which analyzes Riegl’s ideas and arguments and explains why Riegl’s text is still important for contemporary readers; the essays are excellent supplementary material to Riegl’s text. Riegl is perceptive and intuitive, and his approach and content differ strikingly from Heinrich Wölfflin; it might be interesting to read Wölfflin then Riegl’s text to see how art historical scholarship had evolved in just a short period of time.

Call Number: N 6920 .R4813 2010

Blunt, Anthony. Guide to Baroque Rome. Harper & Row, 1982.

• This guide is a survey of all Baroque churches and palaces of significance in Rome, arranged in alphabetical order providing convenience to readers. Blunt’s primary focus is on architecture, as he claims that it was the dominant art of the period, though he indeed includes entries on painting and sculpture, and sometimes he discusses all three together. The text is arranged into topical sections: churches, palaces, the Vatican, villas, fountains, miscellaneous buildings, and the Alban Hills.

Call Number: NA 1120 B55 1982

Angelini, Alessandro. Baroque Sculpture in Rome. Translated by Susan Wise, 5 Continents Editions, 2004.

• This survey of the Baroque tradition of sculpture in Rome is much more in-depth than other surveys listed in this bibliography. Angelini begins his narrative with analysis of artists and sculpture from the early-17^th century then moves into discussions of the rise of Bernini, Alessandro Algardi, and François Duqesnoy. Angelini includes a fascinating section discussing the relationships between the masters and their pupils.

Call Number: NB 620 .A54 2005

Montagu, Jennifer. Gold, Silver and Bronze: Metal Sculpture in the Roman Baroque. Princeton UP, 1996.

• This publication is a series of Andrew Mellon lectures given by Montagu at the National Gallery of Art in Washington in 1991. Montagu examines a limited number of bronze and silver works from the 17^th century and the first half of the 18^th century, which she believes exemplify various aspects of metal sculpture during the period. Rather than only focusing on the art that came out of the workshops, Montagu instead focuses on what happened in the workshops. Using archival documents and drawings, she presents a study of the complex relationship between the artists and the patrons and elucidates for readers a captivating period of sculpture.

Call Number: NB 1220 M65 1996

Favilla, Massimo and Ruggero Rugolo. Baroque Venice: Splendor and Illusion in a “Decadent” World. Translated by Simon Turner, Sassi Editore, 2009.

• This vibrantly illustrated book, with its advanced scholarly narrative, is targeted toward a wide audience, including non-specialist readers. The narrative covers the period in Venice from the time of plague in 1630 to the Treaty of Passarowitz in 1718, focusing on the spiritual, theatrical, extravagantly ornamented, and sometimes grotesque Venetian Baroque works of art. This is an exceptional book for anyone interested in Venetian architecture, sculpture, and painting.

Call Number: N 6921 .V5 F38413 2009

Detroit Institute of Arts. The Twilight of the Medici: Late Baroque Art in Florence, 1670-1743. Centro Di, 1974.

• This exhibition catalog presents a later generation of baroque artists that, until this exhibition, had been widely unknown to both the American and European public and either ignored or forgotten by scholars. Cosimo III, the last Medici, commissioned many splendid artworks, but these Florentine masters and masterpieces of the Baroque period remained obscure until this exhibition showcased their magnificence. The catalog begins with essays on Cosimo and the political and artistic state of Florence during this period. It is organized by artistic form: sculpture, painting, decorative arts, festivals and theatricals.

Call Number: N 6921 .F7 D47 1974

Wunder, Amanda. Baroque Seville: Sacred Art in a Century of Crisis. Pennsylvania State University, 2017.

• Seville is one of the most notable Baroque cities in Spain; Seville experienced a period of crisis when the plague wiped out half of its population in 1649, a period of crisis that prompted the city to reinvent itself under the Baroque aesthetic. Wunder examines the sacred artwork and architectural projects that were commissioned as divine solutions to the city’s problems; she explores the creation of some of the city’s most important monuments.

Call Number: B 7962 .S48 W86 2017

Ciampolini, Marco. Drawing in Renaissance and Baroque Siena: 16^th- and 17^th-Century Drawings from Sienese Collections. Translated by Hugh Ward-Perkins, Georgia Museum of Art, 2002.

• This catalogue expands on Ciampolini’s previous work on Sienese drawing in the mid-17^th century, and presents mostly unpublished drawings that can be linked to final paintings and sculpture. Most of the exhibited drawings are owned by the Biblioteca Comunale, a repository in Siena that holds the largest and most important collection of Renaissance and Baroque drawings. Ciampolini explains that historically, the Sienese people have been accused of being provincial and their production of figurative drawings in the 17^th century is still looked at negatively, even though the Sienese school has always been a high standing one which produced artists who collaborated with Old Masters. This publication seeks to refute the negative connotations associated with the Sienese school.

Call Number: NC 256 .S5 C53 2002

Tapié, Victor-L. The Age of Grandeur: Baroque Art and Architecture. Translated by A. Ross Williamson, Praeger, 1961.

• This book is particularly interesting, as Tapié includes a chapter dedicated to a discussion of the Baroque in Poland and Russia. Most art history books on the period seem to focus primarily on the French, Netherlandish, Italian, and Spanish Baroque periods, so Tapié’s detailed account of Poland and Russia within Baroque historical context makes this a notable resource. Tapié also provides photographs with descriptions of Polish and Russian Baroque monuments.

Call Number: N 6410 .T313 1961

Campbell, Thomas P. and Elizabeth A. H. Cleland, editors. Tapestry in the Baroque: New Aspects of Production and Patronage. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2010.

• This publication is a collection of the essays that were presented at the symposium held in 2007 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art shortly after the opening of the exhibition “Tapestry in the Baroque: Threads of Splendor.” Tapestry played a central role in the art, culture, and propaganda of the late-15^th and 16^th century European courts, creating a new tapestry aesthetic that expanded to other parts of Europe from the Flemish tapestry industry. The essays serve to enhance our knowledge and understanding of the artistically and historically important Baroque tapestry tradition.

Call Number: NK 3007.4 .T36 2010

Campbell, Thomas P., editor. Tapestry in the Baroque: Threads of Splendor. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2007.

• This publication accompanied the 2007 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which focused on high-quality Baroque tapestries and their artistic production. It serves as an introduction to the discipline of Baroque tapestry, a subject that Campbell claims has been neglected by the English-speaking world. The publication is an anthology of scholarship by the foremost tapestry scholars and curators of the period and is the first comprehensive survey of seventeenth-century European tapestry.

Call Number: NK 3007.4 .T37 2007

Dixon, Susan M., editor. Printmakers of the Baroque. La Salle University Art Museum, 2014.

• This book surveys the 17^th century innovative printmaking techniques, particularly etching, which became popular among artists in the 17^th century due to its inexpensive cost and ease of transportation. This technique allowed artists to widely disseminate their own original works, as well as reproductions of paintings by other masters. The essays in this collection examine Baroque printmaking techniques in relation to the artists and audience interpretation.

Call Number: NE 475 .P75 2014

Gruber, Alain, editor. The History of the Decorative Arts: Classicism and the Baroque in Europe. Abbeville Press, 1996.

• In his introduction to this volume, Gruber presents historical and artistic background, and examines the meaning of decorative arts in the context of the Baroque period, specifically the years between 1630 and 1760. The main body of the text focuses on the different modes and themes of Baroque decorative arts and presents readers with theoretical essays and spectacular images, all accompanied by explanatory captions.

Call Number: NK 770 .A7813 1996

Weil, Mark S. Baroque Theatre & Stage Design. Washington University, 1983.

• This publication is a demonstration of the interdisciplinary nature of the Baroque period; the Baroque art movement did not just produce painting, sculpture, and architecture, but also encompassed theatre, as well. Weil examines the way the characteristics of the Baroque tradition translate to theatre productions of the time, from the stage scenes creating illusions of vast cities and landscapes to the grandeur of the music and exotic costumes, and introduces readers to the dramatic character and theatricality of the Baroque period.

Call Number: PN 2091 S8 W37 1983

Ladis, Andrew and Carolyn Wood, editors; William U. Eiland, general editor. The Craft of Art: Originality and Industry in the Italian Renaissance and Baroque Workshops. University of Georgia Press, 1995.

• The essays in this collection examine the relationships between pupils, assistants, and independent masters during the imaginative and creation processes in order to shed light on the artists’ work habits and aesthetic principles. The contributors hope that this focus on the workshop perspective will create new scholarship opportunities, as well as improve our understanding of the connection between creative development and production.

Call Number: N 6915 .C73 1995

Dixon, Annette, editor. Women Who Ruled: Queens, Goddesses, Amazons in Renaissance and Baroque Art. Merrell, 2002.

• This publication accompanied an exhibition focusing on women’s authority in early modern Europe, as well as women as the subject of Renaissance and Baroque art. While it is not the easiest text to quickly navigate between the Baroque and Renaissance periods unless one is looking for a specific topic or person in the index, it is certainly valuable, as it provides social, political, historical, and mythological background. The essays explore how feminine power was visualized during the period; Dixon examines artistic female archetypes and illustrates how contemporaneous idealizations of women are reflected in the images created. The book jacket states that Women Who Ruled is an accessible and authoritative work with scholarship that contributes significantly to both the art history and women’s studies disciplines.

Call Number: ND 1460 .W65 D59 2002