Italian Baroque architecture
Pietro da Cortona's work, like Santi Luca e Martina (1635) and Santa Maria della Pace (1656), emphasizes movement, continuity, and dramatic effects.
Bernini's favorite work was the oval shaped Sant'Andrea al Quirinale (1658), featuring a lofty altar and soaring dome that showcase Baroque style.
Borromini's masterpiece, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, is famous for its wavy oval shape and intricate curves.
Another notable work, Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza, features creative designs and a corkscrew-shaped dome, avoiding flat surfaces.
While less innovative than earlier Roman architects, Fontana's writings and teachings greatly influenced Baroque architecture, spreading its style across 18th-century Europe.
The final phase of Baroque architecture in Italy is showcased by Luigi Vanvitelli's Caserta Palace, one of the largest buildings in 18th-century Europe.
The decorative Sicilian Baroque period lasted about 50 years, reflecting the island's social order, under Spain's nominal rule but governed by a wealthy aristocracy.
In the north of Italy, particularly Turin, the House of Savoy embraced the new style, showcasing their royal status through the works of architects Guarino Guarini, Filippo Juvarra and Bernardo Vittone.
Guarini, a traveling monk, blended various traditions, including that of Gothic architecture, to create unique structures with oval columns and unconventional façades.
Bernardo Vittone, deeply inspired by Juvarra and Guarini, the most prominent was a leading Piedmontese architect known for his ornate Rococo churches.
The octagonal basilica includes a sanctuary flanked by two apses, inspired by Palladio's Il Redentore, enhancing the temple's longitudinal axis.
At Ca' Pesaro, he used a traditional layout but added a Baroque touch with intricate facade decorations that play with light and shadow.
His detailed dramatic style peaked with the façade of Santa Maria dei Derelitti (1670s), adorned with atlantes, giant heads and lion masks.
One example is the Palazzo Doria Tursi, where the vestibule's layout and the indoor garden, accessed by a wide staircase, create a sense of depth and movement.
