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From the first quarter of the 17th century Sicilian Churches had begun to be decorated in elaborate styles using profuse gilding, frecos and marble, but from the late 1720s, as the post earthquake churches began to be completed, Sicilian Baroque interiors reflected the external decoration too. In churches this took the form of profuse sculpted decoration of pillars, cornices and pediments. This frequently gilded sculpture often took the form of putti flora and fauna. Inlaid coloured marbles on floors and walls are one of the most defining features of the style, these frequently take the form of complex patterns. These patterns are in themselves interesting as they often, with their roundels of [[porphyry]], in styles derived from decorative designs found in the Norman cathedrals of Europe; again enforcing the Norman derivation of Sicilian architecture. The high altar is frequently the "piece de resistance" of the Baroque decoration decoration, often a single block of coloured marble, decorated with gilt scrolls, swags, and frequently inset with other stones such as [[lapis lazuli]] and [[agate]]. Steps leading to the altar dais are frequently curving between concave and convex these are also often decorated with inlaid coloured marbles, one of the finest examples of this in in the church of S. Zita in Palermo. |
From the first quarter of the 17th century Sicilian Churches had begun to be decorated in elaborate styles using profuse gilding, frecos and marble, but from the late 1720s, as the post earthquake churches began to be completed, Sicilian Baroque interiors reflected the external decoration too. In churches this took the form of profuse sculpted decoration of pillars, cornices and pediments. This frequently gilded sculpture often took the form of putti flora and fauna. Inlaid coloured marbles on floors and walls are one of the most defining features of the style, these frequently take the form of complex patterns. These patterns are in themselves interesting as they often, with their roundels of [[porphyry]], in styles derived from decorative designs found in the Norman cathedrals of Europe; again enforcing the Norman derivation of Sicilian architecture. The high altar is frequently the "piece de resistance" of the Baroque decoration decoration, often a single block of coloured marble, decorated with gilt scrolls, swags, and frequently inset with other stones such as [[lapis lazuli]] and [[agate]]. Steps leading to the altar dais are frequently curving between concave and convex these are also often decorated with inlaid coloured marbles, one of the finest examples of this in in the church of S. Zita in Palermo. |
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The building of Sicily's churches were frequently funded not just by individual religious orders, but often by an aristocratic family. Contrary to a widely held belief, the majority of Sicily's nobility did not choose to have their mortal remains displayed for eternity in the [[Capucin catacombs]], but were buried quite conventionally in [[vault]]s beneath their family churches. It has been said, though, that "''the funeral of a Sicilian aristocrat was one of the great moments of his life''" {{ref|1}. [[Funeral]]s became tremendous shows of wealth, which led to The stone memorial slabs covering the burial vaults today providing an accurate barometer of the development of Baroque and marble inlay techniques in any specific year. For instance those dated during the first half of the 17th century are of simple white marble decorated by an incised armorial bearing, name and date etc. From circa 1650 one begins to see small quantities of coloured marble inlay, forming patterns, one can watch this development clearly until by the end of the century, the [[coat of arms|coats of arms]], and calligraphy are entirely of inset coloured marble, with decorative patterned boarders. |
The building of Sicily's churches were frequently funded not just by individual religious orders, but often by an aristocratic family. Contrary to a widely held belief, the majority of Sicily's nobility did not choose to have their mortal remains displayed for eternity in the [[Capucin catacombs]], but were buried quite conventionally in [[vault]]s beneath their family churches. It has been said, though, that "''the funeral of a Sicilian aristocrat was one of the great moments of his life''" {{ref|1}}. [[Funeral]]s became tremendous shows of wealth, which led to The stone memorial slabs covering the burial vaults today providing an accurate barometer of the development of Baroque and marble inlay techniques in any specific year. For instance those dated during the first half of the 17th century are of simple white marble decorated by an incised armorial bearing, name and date etc. From circa 1650 one begins to see small quantities of coloured marble inlay, forming patterns, one can watch this development clearly until by the end of the century, the [[coat of arms|coats of arms]], and calligraphy are entirely of inset coloured marble, with decorative patterned boarders. |
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The church of S. Benedetto in Catania (picture left) is a fine example a Sicilian Baroque interior. Decorated between 1726 and 1762, the period when Sicilian Baroque was at the height of its fashion and individuality. The ceilings were frescoed by the artist [[Tuccari]]. However the most spectacular part of the church's decoration is the spectacular nun's choir (illustrated left) created circa 1750, it was designed in such a way as the nun's voices could be heard during services, but the nun's themselves were still quite separate from, and unseen by, the less spiritual world outside. |
The church of S. Benedetto in Catania (picture left) is a fine example a Sicilian Baroque interior. Decorated between 1726 and 1762, the period when Sicilian Baroque was at the height of its fashion and individuality. The ceilings were frescoed by the artist [[Tuccari]]. However the most spectacular part of the church's decoration is the spectacular nun's choir (illustrated left) created circa 1750, it was designed in such a way as the nun's voices could be heard during services, but the nun's themselves were still quite separate from, and unseen by, the less spiritual world outside. |
Revision as of 20:34, 11 October 2005
"Sicilian Baroque" describes the unique forms Baroque architecture took in the 17th and 18th centuries, recognisable not just by its typical baroque curves and flourishes, but by its grinning masks and putti, and an individual flamboyance not seen elsewhere. Until recently little studied, recognised or appreciated, in spite of a pioneering study by Anthony Blunt (Refs.), its Baroque gives Sicily a unique architectural individuality.
The Sicilian Baroque style came to fruition following a huge surge of rebuilding after a massive earthquake in 1693. Before this date the baroque style had been employed on the island in a naive and provincial vernacular style, more evolved from the hybrid native architecture than anything derived from the great Baroque architects of Rome. In the wake of the earthquake local architects, many of whom had trained in Rome, were given plentiful opportunities to recreate the more sophisticated Baroque that was currently popular in mainland Italy;their work, and the new genre of suites of architectural engravings inspired further local architects to follow their example. Circa 1730 Sicilian architecture came into the hands of native Sicilian architects who were now competent and confident in their use of Baroque. Their interpretation of the style led it further into a personalised and highly localised art form. By the 1780s the style was gradually being replaced by the newly fashionable Neoclassicism.
Sicily's Baroque era, ornate and highly decorated, perfectly reflected the social history of the country at that time, and came to symbolize the swan song of its noble patrons. The phenomena that was true Sicilian Baroque lasted barely fifty years, but stamped an architectural identity on the island that was to last untill the present day.
Characteristics of Sicilian Baroque
- Main article: Baroque.
Baroque architecture is a European style of design originating from 17th century Italy, flamboyant and theatrical, and richly ornamented by both sculpture, and the effect of light and shade on the building created by mass and shadow known as chiaroscuro.
Sicilian Baroque is more than just Baroque which happens to be in Sicily; but it is difficult to define any one singular feature which differentiates Sicilian Baroque from the Baroque found elsewhere. Anthony Blunt [1] makes great play of the elaborate and complex external staircases leading to many of the churches, sited atop hills, and the piano nobili of the many villas and palazzi [2] , and while these are indeed plentiful in Sicily, though not often of such complex design, they are not unknown elsewhere. This is the crux of the problem: no one feature is completely unique to Sicily, so one has to look at the composition as a whole, and then with greater difficulty evaluate, and acquire a sixth sense to decide, if the architecture has the indefinable "joie de vivre" in its curves, scrolls and flourishes.
The most obvious distinguishing feature of Sicilian baroque, and often best remembered are the multitudes of grotesque masks and putti, often supporting balconies or decorating various bands of a building's entablature; these grinning or glaring faces are a relic of Mannerist Sicilian architecture. The balconies supported by the putti, are themselves too a feature of Sicilian Baroque, often complemented by intricate wrought iron balustrades.
Another important feature of Sicilian architecture which is clearly discernable before the earthquake is the Sicilian Belfry (architecture). The Sicilian belfry, was not placed beside the church in a campanile tower, as is often to be found in Italy]] but on the facade itself, often surmounting the central pediment, with one or more bells, each clearly displayed beneath its own arch. In a large church with many bells this would often result in a highly sculpted and decorated arcaded at the highest point of the principal facade, as at Catania's Collegiata (illustration above). The belfry was one of the most enduring and characteristic features of Sicilian baroque architecture, while inside the church a profusion of inlaid coloured marbles set into both floor and walls provided another feature of the style.
While the columns may be gilded, they are deployed in this three aisled church, singularly supporting plain arches much as in the earlier Norman period]]. Also to survive the tests of time, and become a feature of Sicilian baroque, was the decorated rustication.Sebastiano Serlio had decorated the blocks of ashlar in his rustication, but by the end of the 16th century Sicilian architects were ornamenting the blocks with carcings of leaves, fish- scales, even sweets, but most important of shells; shells were to become the most prevelant ornamental symbols of baroque design.
One more distinction often seen in Sicilian architecture, is the use of columns, in Sicily one rarely, especially in the earlier works, encounters columns in clustered groups acting as piers, in most cases they are employed singularly in the Norman tadition, this is most noticeable in church interiors.
Finally, the architectural influence of the ruling Spanish, if to a lesser extent than the Norman Gothic. The Spanish style is especially obvious in eastern Sicily. Messina's monumental Porta Grazia, (1680) for all its strong Sicilian features, would not be out of place in any of the towns and citadels built by the Spanish in their colonies elsewhere. The style of this gate was widely copied all over Catania immediately folowing the quake.
These peculiarities and distinctions some easy to spot, others less so, were all in various degrees to infiltrate the Baroque form which was to sweep Sicily in the 18th century.
Sicilian achitecture before 1693
Volcanic Sicily in the central Mediterranean off the Italian peninsula has been colonized by Greek city-states, oppressed under the Romans, governed by Byzantines, conquered by barbarians, then a Moslem emirate, a Norman duchy, a Hohenstaufen kingdom, ruled by Angevins, given to Spain, then to the Neapolitan Bourbons before finally being united in the Kingdom of Italy in 1860. Thus Sicilians have absorbed many cultures, and consequently the island has had a wide diversity of architecture.
A form of decorated classical architecture peculiar to Sicily had begun to evolve from the 1530s onwards. This often took the form of incorporating Greek architectural motifs, such as the Greek key pattern, applied to Norman Gothic features such as arches and window apertures.
However, what is unique about this early ornate architecture is that unlike in mainland Europe it did not grow from Renaissance architecture but from an evolved form of Norman Gothic. Renaissance architecture hardly touched Sicily, indeed in the capital city of Palermo the only High Renaissance architectural object is a singular water fountain brought from Florence when it was already twenty years old. (pictured left)
For whatever reason Renaissance style never became popular in Sicily, it was certainly not through ignorance. Antonello Gagini was midway through constructing the church of Santa Maria di Porto Salvo in 1536 in Renaissance style when he died, he was replaced by the architect Antonio Scaglione who completed the building in a Norman style. This Norman style seems to have influenced Sicilian architecture almost to the time of the 1693 earthquake. Even Mannerism passed the island by. Only in the architecture of Messina [3] could a Renaissance influence be discerned, partly for geographical reasons: Messina, within sight of mainland Italy, was always more amenable to the prevailing tides of fashion prevailing there. The town's aristocratic patrons would often call on Florence or Rome to provide them with an architect; one example of such a foreigner was the Florentine architect Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli who established the Tuscan styles of architecture and sculpture there in the mid 16th century. However these influences remained largely confined to Messina and the surrounding district. It seems likely that it was the patronage of the Roman Catholic church, always, removed from Rome, that remained conservative in architectural taste.
This is not to say Sicily was not influenced by what was happening elsewhere in Europe. Architecture in the island's major cities was revolutionised by a family of sculptors the Gagini, who arrived from Florence in 1463, they began to decorate churches and buildings with ornate decorative and figurative sculpture. Less than a century after his family had begun to cautiously decorate the island's churches, Between 1531 and 1537 Antonello Gagini completed the proscenium-like arch of the "Capella della Madonna", in the "Santuario dell'Annunziata" at Trapani. This pedimented arch to the sanctuary has pilasters not fluted but decorated heavily with relief busts of the saints, most importantly, in terms of architecture, the pediment is adorned by reclining saints supporting swags linked to the central shield crowning the pediment. This ornate pediment, though still unbroken, was one of the first signs that Sicily's own form of decorative architecture was forming. Baroque was not to be truly a style anywhere in Europe for a further seventy years.
Thus Baroque architecture had begun to evolve in Sicily long before the earthquake of 1693. While the majority of those buildings which can be clearly classified as baroque in style date from circa 1650 the scarcity of these isolated surviving examples of Sicily's 17th century architectural history make it is hard to fully and accurately evaluate the architecture immediatly prior to the 1693 quake - so much was destroyed, including often the documents recording what existed before. Information has been further blurred by subsequent earthquakes, and severe bombing in World War II.
The earliest example of Baroque, and indeed town planning, on the island is Giulio Lasso's Quattro Canti constructed circa 1610, a cross-roads formed of the city's two principal streets. Around this intersection an octagon shaped piazza, or circus, was formed, with four open sides being the streets, and four matching buildings with identical canted corners. The sides of the four buildings are curved further heightening the Baroque design of the buildings created to line the circus. These four great buildings dominating the circus, have at ground level fountains reminiscent of those of Pope Sixtus V's "Quattro Fontane" in Rome, but here in Palermo the Baroque theme continues up three storeys of the buildings adorned with statues in recessed niches depicting the four seasons, the four Spanish kings of Sicily, and the four patronesses of Palermo, (Cristina, Ninfa, Olivia, and Agata).
While each facade of Quattro Canti is pleasing to the eye, as a scheme it is out of proportion to the limited size of the piazza, and like most other examples of early Sicilian Baroque can be considered provincial,naive and heavy-handed, compared to that which was to follow.
Whatever its merit it is evident that during the 17th century Baroque in the hands of the local architects and sculptors was already deviating from the baroque in mainland Italy. Localising of Baroque was not peculiar to Sicily but was happening as far a field as from Bavaria to Russia. In fact Rusia's Naryshkin baroque was to be in its own way just as eccentric as its Sicilian cousin.
Sicily 1693
The great Sicilian earthquake of 1693, severely damaged fifty-four cities and towns, and 300 villages. The epicentre of the disaster was in Val di Noto, where the city of Noto was completely destroyed, the city of Catania, was very severely damaged. In all it is estimated over 100,000 perished. Other towns which suffered severely were Ragusa, Modica, Scicli and Ispica.
Almost immediately rebuilding began. To understand the lavishness of the architecture that was to arise from the disaster, one has to understand the politics of Sicily at the time: Sicily was still officially under Spanish rule, but in truth the island was ruled by its native aristocracy. This was led by the Duke of Camastra, whom the Spannish had appointed viceroy to appease the aristocracy. It is worth noting there were more aristocrats per square meter than in any other state. In the 18th century it was estimated [4] there were 228 noble families, who provided Sicily with a ruling class consisting of 58 princes, 27 dukes, 37 marquesses, 26 Counts, 1 viscount and 79 barons— the Golden Book of the Sicilian nobility (which was last published in 1926) listed even more. In addition to these were the younger scions of the family with their courtesy titles of nobile or baron.
Architecture was not the Normans only legacy, rule over the peasants (there was no established middle class) was enforced by a feudal system, unchanged since its introduction following the Norman conquest of 1071. Thus the Sicilian aristocracy had not only wealth but command of a huge manpower, which had by this time declined in many other parts of Europe.
The aristocracy shared their power only with the Roman Catholic church. The church ruled by fear of damnation in the next life, and the inquisition in the present as a consequence both upper and lower classes gave as generously as they could on all major saints days. Many of its priests and bishops were themselves members of the aristocracy, furthermore the wealth of the Church in Sicily was enhanced by the tradition of pressing younger sons and daughters of the aristocracy to enter monasteries and convents, in order to preserve the family estates from division; a large fee, or dowry, was usually paid to the church to facilitate this, in the form of property, jewels or money. Thus the wealth of certain religious orders grew out of all proportion to the economic growth of any other group at this time. This is the one of the reasons that so many of the Sicilian Baroque churches and monasteries such as S. Martino delle Scale were rebuilt after 1693 on such a lavish scale.
Planning the new cities
Following the quake a program of rebuilding was rapidly put into action, but before it began in earnest some important decisions had to be taken, which were permanently to differentiate Sicilian towns from most other European urban developments. The Viceroy the Duke of Camastra decided that rather than rebuilding in the medieval plan of cramped narrow streets, the new rebuilding would offer wider main streets, and piazzas, often on a rational grid system. The whole plan was often to take a geometric shape such as a perfect square or hexagon typical of baroque town planning. The concept was very new in the 1690s, few new cities had reason to be built in Europe. The prototype may well have been the new city of Terra del Sole [5] constructed in 1564 for Cosimo I de’ Medici by Baldassarre Lanci of Urbino. Another of the first towns to be planned using symmetry and order rather than an evolution of small alleys and streets was Alessandria in southern Piedmont. A little later in the Hispanic colonies of South America, baroque, and this Baroque form of planning was favoured especially by the Portuguese in their colonies, particularly Brazil from 1711. In other parts of Europe, local interests were too entrenched to permit radical replanning after disaster: in 1666 the City of London was all but destroyed by fire; the City itself was rebuilt on its ancient plan, though the new extensions to the west were partially on a grid system. In Sicily, public opinion (the public being the peasantry) counted for nothing hence the revolutionary new concepts of town planning could be more freely executed.
However in Sicily the decision was taken not just for fashion and appearance but also because it would minimise the damage to property and life likely to be caused in future quakes. In 1693 the cramped housing and streets had caused buildings to collapse together like a house of cards. It is interesting to note though, that the poor's areas were still cramped and narrow. Architecturally the big advantage of this new town planning was that unlike in many Italian towns and cities, where one frequently encounters a monumental Renaissance church squeezed terrace fashion between incongruous neighbours in a narrow street. In urban baroque design one can step back and actually see the architecture in a more conducive setting in relation to its size, proportions and perspective. This is most notable in the largely rebuilt towns of Caltagirone, Militello Val di Catania, Catania, Modica, Noto, Palazzolo, Ragusa and Scicli.
One of the best examples of this new form of urban planning can be seen at Noto, the town rebuilt approximately 10 km from its original site on Mount Alveria. The old ruined town now known as "Noto Antica" can still be viewed in its ruinous state. The new site chosen was flatter than the old to better facilitate a linear grid-like plan. The principal streets run east to west so they would benefit from a better light and a sunnier disposition. This example of town planning is directly attributable to a learned local landowner Giovanni Battista Landolina; helped by three local architects, he planned the new city himself.
In these new towns, the aristocracy were allocated the higher areas, where the air was cooler and fresher and the views finest. The church was allocated the town centre, for convenience to all, and to reflect the church's world position; round the pairing of cathedral and episcopal Palazzo Vescovile were built the convents, and the merchants and storekeepers chose their lots on the planned wider streets. Finally the poor were allowed the areas nobody else wanted. In this way Baroque town planning came to symbolize and reflect political authority, later its style and philosophy spread to such far away places as Annapolis Williamburg New Bern and Savannah in English America, and perhaps most notably Baron Haussmann's 19th century re-designing of Paris. The stage was now set for the explosion of baroque architecture which was to predominate in Sicily until the early 19th century.
Later many other Sicilian towns and cities which had been either little damaged or completely untouched by the quake, such as Palermo, were also transformed by the baroque style. In Palermo the Church of S. Caterina begin in 1566, was one of many in the city to be redecorated inside in the Baroque with coloured marbles in the 18th century.
Rebuilding Sicily after 1693
Of Sicily's own form of baroque, post 1693, it has been said [6] "The buildings conceived in the wake of this disaster expressed a lighthearted freedom of decoration whose incongruous gaiety was intended, perhaps, to assuage the horror". While this is an accurate description of the style is indeed almost a celebration of joie de vivre in stone, this is unlikely to be the reason for its choice. As with all architectural styles the selection of style would have directly linked to current fashion. Versailles had been completed in 1688 in the baroque style; Louis XIV's new palace was immediatly emulated across Europe by any aristocrat or sovereign in Europe aspiring to wealth, taste, or power. Thus it was the obvious choice for the "homeless rich" of Sicily, of whom there were hundreds. The excesses of the Baroque style palazzi, and country villas to be constructed in Sicily, however were soon to cast Versailles into the role of model of restraint.
As the 18th century dawned Sicilian architects were now employed to create the new palazzi and churches. These, often local, architects were now able to design in a more sophisticated style than those of the late 17th century; many had been trained in mainland Italy, and had returned with a more detailed understanding of the baroque idiom. Their work inspired less-travelled Sicilian designers. Very importantly, these architects were also assisted by the books of engravings by Domenico de' Rossi who for the first time wrote down text with his engravings giving the precise dimensions and measurements of many of the principal Renaissance and Baroque facades in Rome. In this way the Renaissance finally came late to Sicily by proxy.
At this stage of its development Sicilian Baroque still lacked the warmth, joy, and freedom that it was later to acquire. Giovanni Battista Vaccarini was the leading Sicilian architect during this period. He arrived on the Island in 1730 bringing with him a fusion of the concepts of Bernini and Borromini, and introduced to the Island's architecture a unified movement and a play of curves, which would have been unacceptable in Rome itself. However, his works are considered of lesser quality than that which was to come [7]. Notable works which date from this period are the 18th century wings of the Palazzo Biscari at Catania; and Vaccarini's church of S. Agata also in Catania. On this building Vaccarini quite clearly copied the capitals from Guarino Guarini's "Architettura Civile". It is this frequent copying of established designs which causes the architecture from this period to be, while oppulent, also to have a disciplined, almost reined in feel to them. Vaccarini's style was to dominate Catania for the next decades.
A second hindrance to Sicilian architects' fully acheiving their potential earlier, was that frequently they were only rebuilding a damaged structure, as a consequence having to match their designs to what had been before, or remained. The Cathedral of G. Giorgio at Modica (pictured left) is an example of this. Badly damaged in the earthquake of 1613, rebuilt in 1643 in a Baroque style while keeping the medieval layout, then damaged again in 1693. Rebuilding again began in 1702, by an unknown architect. Finally, Rosario Gagliardi oversaw the facade's completion in 1760 (put a note in here Blunt P 150) but the compromises he had to make in deference to the existing structure are obvious. While Gagliardi used the same formulae he used so sucessfully at the church of S. Giorgio in Ragusa, here in Modica the building is heavier, and lacks his usual lightnes of touch and freedom of design.
There were also at this time other influences at work. Between 1718 and 1734 Sicily was ruled personally by Charles VI from [Vienna]], as a result of this close ties with Austrian architecture can be perceived. Several buildings on the island are shameless imitations of the works of Fischer von Erlach [8]. One Sicilian architect Tomasso Napoli, a monk, visited Vienna twice early in the century, returning with a store of engraving and drawings. He was later the architect of two country villas, of the early Sicilian baroque period, remarkable for their concave and convex walls and the complex design of their external staircases. One, his [Villa Palagonia]] begun in 1705 is the most complex and ingenious of all constructed in Sicily's Baroque era, the double staircase of straight flights, frequently changing direction, was to be the prototype of what became a distinguishing features of Sicilian Baroque.
Later a new wave of architects, who would master the Baroque sentiments, aware of Rococo interior styles beginning elsewhere to gain an ascendency over Baroque. These architects would go on to develop the flamboyance and freedom and movement which is synonemous the term Sicilian Baroque today.
Sicilian Baroque from 1730
Circa 1730, the Baroque style gradually began to break away from the defined Roman style of Baroque and gain an even stronger individuality, this was for two reasons: in this era the rush to rebuild was subsiding, construction was becoming more leisurely and thoughtful; and a new clutch of home-grown Sicilian architects came to the forefront. This new generation had watched the rebuilding in the Baroque, and studied the ever more frequent engravings and architectural books and treatises arriving from the mainland. However they were not like their predecessors the former students of the Romans and as a consequence were able to formulate strong individual styles of their own. These architects included Andrea Palma, Rosario Gagliardi and Tomasso Napoli. While taking account of the baroque of Naples and Rome, they now adapted their designs for the local needs and traditions. Their use of resources and exploitation of the sites was often wildly inventive. Napoli and then Vaccarini had promoted the use of the external staircase, this was now taken to a new dimension - churches upon the summits of a hills would now be reached by fantastical flights of steps (redolent of Vaccarini's mentor Francesco De Sanctis's Spanish Steps in Rome).
Facades of churches often came to resemble wedding cakes rather than places of worship as the architects grew in confidence, competence and stature. Church interiors which until this date had been slightly pedestrian now, especially in Palermo, came to be decorated in a riot of inlaid marbles of a wide variety of colours. Professor Anthony Blunt has described this decoration as: "either fascinating or repulsive, but however the individual spectator may react to it, this style is a characteristic manifestation of Sicilian exuberance, and must be classed amongst the most important and original creations of Baroque art on the Island" This is the key to Sicilian Baroque; it was ideally matched to the Sicilian personality, and this was the reason it evolved so dramatically on the island. Nowhere in Sicily is the development of the new Baroque style more evident than in Ragusa and Catania
Ragusa
Ragusa was very damaged in 1693. The town is in two halves the older town of Ragusa Ibla, and the higher Ragusa Superiore divided by a deep ravine known as the "Valle dei Ponti"
Ragusa Ibla, the lower city, boasts an impressive array of baroque architecture, which includes the Church of San Giorgio by Rosario Gagliardi, designed in 1738. In the design of this church Gagliardi exploited the difficult terrain of the hillside site. The church towers impressivly over a massive marble staircase of some 250 steps. The tower seems to explode from the facade, accentuated by the columns and pilasters cnated against the curved walls. Above the doorways and window appertures pediments scroll and curve with a sense of freedom and movement to the design which would have been unthinkable to those earlier architects inspired by Bernini and Borromini. The neoclassical dome was not built untill 1820.
In an alley connecting Ragusa Ibla with Ragusa Superiore is the church of Santa Maria delle Scale. This church is interesting, though badly damaged in the earthquake only half of this church was rebuilt in Baroque style, while the surviving half was kept in the original Norman Gothic, thus demonstratng in one piece the evolution of Sicilian Baroque, as opposed to the Baroque elsewhere in Europe defined by classical Rome.
The Palazzo Zacco is one of the more notable baroque buildings of the city, its Corinthian columns support balconies of amazing wrought iron work, while supports of grotesques mock, shock or amuse the passer-by. The palazzo was built in the second half of the 18th century by the Baron Melfi. It was later acquired by the Zacco family, from which it has taken the name. The building has two street facades, each with with six wide balconies bearing the coat of arms of the Melfi family:- a frame of acanthus leaves from which a puttino leans. The balconies, a feature of the palazzo, are notable for the differing corbels which support them, these range from putti to musicians and grotesques. The focal point of the principal facade are the three central balconies divided by columns with corinthean captals. Here the balconies are supported by images of musicians with grottesque faces
The Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista in Ragusa Superiore was built between 1718 and 1778. Its principal façade is pure baroque, containing fine carvings and sculptures. The cathedral has a high Sicilian belfry in the same style. The ornate baroque interior is separated into three colonnaded aisles. (illustrated above) Ragusa Superiore, the most damaged part of the town, was replanned following 1693 arond the cathedral, here is an unusual phenomena of Sicilian Baroque, the palazzi here are peculier to this town, of only two storeys and long, with the central bay only emphasised by a balcony and an arch to the inner garden - this very Portugese style, probably designed to minimise damage in future earthquakes, is very different to palazzi in Ragusa Ibla which are in true Sicilian style. Interestingly Baroque linguered on here until the early 19th century. The last palazzo built here was in the Baroque form but with columns of Roman Doric and neo-classical balconies.
Catania
Sicily's second city, Catania, was the most damaged of al the larger cities in 1693, very little remained just the medieval Castello Ursino and three tribunes of the cathedral. Thus it was replanned and rebuilt. The new design divided the city into quarters divided by two roads meeting at an intersection known as the Piazza dell Duomo. (Cathedral Square) Rebuilding was supervised by eh Bishop of Catania, and the city's only surviving architect Alonzo di Benedetto Benedetto headed a team of junior architects called in from Messina, they quickly began to rebuild concentrating first on the Piazza dell Duomo. Three palazzi are situated here, the Bishop's Palace, the Seminario and one other. The architects worked in complete harmony and it is impossible to distinguish Benedetto's work from that of his junior colleagues. The work is completent but not unremarkable, with decorated rustication in the 17th century Sicilian style, but often the decoration on the upper floors is superficial. This is typical of the baroque of this period immediately prior to the earthquake.
In 1730 Vaccarini arrived in Catania as the apointed city architect and immediatly impressed on the architecture the Roman Baroque style, the pillasters loose their rustication and support Roman type cornices and entablatures, or curved pediments, and free standing columnd supporting balconies. Vaccarini also exploited the local black lava stine as a decorative feature, rather than a general building material, using it intermittebntly with other materials, and spectacularly for an obelisk supported on the back of the Catanian heraldic elephant for a fountain in the style of Bernini in front of the new Town hall. Vaccarini's principal facade to Catania's cathedral dedicated to S. Agata, even at this late stage of Sicilian Baroque shows strong Spanish influences. Also in the city is Stefano Ittar's Church of the Collegiata, built circa 1768, it is an example of Sicilian Baroque at its mosy stylistacaly simple.
Interiors
From the first quarter of the 17th century Sicilian Churches had begun to be decorated in elaborate styles using profuse gilding, frecos and marble, but from the late 1720s, as the post earthquake churches began to be completed, Sicilian Baroque interiors reflected the external decoration too. In churches this took the form of profuse sculpted decoration of pillars, cornices and pediments. This frequently gilded sculpture often took the form of putti flora and fauna. Inlaid coloured marbles on floors and walls are one of the most defining features of the style, these frequently take the form of complex patterns. These patterns are in themselves interesting as they often, with their roundels of porphyry, in styles derived from decorative designs found in the Norman cathedrals of Europe; again enforcing the Norman derivation of Sicilian architecture. The high altar is frequently the "piece de resistance" of the Baroque decoration decoration, often a single block of coloured marble, decorated with gilt scrolls, swags, and frequently inset with other stones such as lapis lazuli and agate. Steps leading to the altar dais are frequently curving between concave and convex these are also often decorated with inlaid coloured marbles, one of the finest examples of this in in the church of S. Zita in Palermo.
The building of Sicily's churches were frequently funded not just by individual religious orders, but often by an aristocratic family. Contrary to a widely held belief, the majority of Sicily's nobility did not choose to have their mortal remains displayed for eternity in the Capucin catacombs, but were buried quite conventionally in vaults beneath their family churches. It has been said, though, that "the funeral of a Sicilian aristocrat was one of the great moments of his life" [9]. Funerals became tremendous shows of wealth, which led to The stone memorial slabs covering the burial vaults today providing an accurate barometer of the development of Baroque and marble inlay techniques in any specific year. For instance those dated during the first half of the 17th century are of simple white marble decorated by an incised armorial bearing, name and date etc. From circa 1650 one begins to see small quantities of coloured marble inlay, forming patterns, one can watch this development clearly until by the end of the century, the coats of arms, and calligraphy are entirely of inset coloured marble, with decorative patterned boarders.
The church of S. Benedetto in Catania (picture left) is a fine example a Sicilian Baroque interior. Decorated between 1726 and 1762, the period when Sicilian Baroque was at the height of its fashion and individuality. The ceilings were frescoed by the artist Tuccari. However the most spectacular part of the church's decoration is the spectacular nun's choir (illustrated left) created circa 1750, it was designed in such a way as the nun's voices could be heard during services, but the nun's themselves were still quite separate from, and unseen by, the less spiritual world outside.
Today, the interiors of the many Palazzi are harder to evaluate. This was for several reason.................
Final period
As with all architectural styles eventually people eventually tired of Baroque, in some parts of Europe it metamorphosed into the Rococo. This was not the case in Sicily. No longer ruled by Austria, Sicily since 1735 officially the Kingdom of Sicily was ruled by the King of Naples, Ferdinand IV, hence Palermo was in constant association with the principal capital Naples, where there was architectutally a growing reversion to the more classical styles of architecture, coupled with this many of the more cultured Sicilian nobility developed a fashionable obsession for all things French - from philosophy to arts, fashion and architecture. Many of them visited Paris in pursuit of their interests returning with the latest architectural engravings and theoretical treatises. The French architect Léon Dufourny came to Sicily between 1787 and 1794 to study and analyse the ancient Greek temples on the Island, thus it was that Sicilians rediscovered their ancient past which with its classical idioms was now the height of fashion. The change in tastes did not come about overnight, Baroque was still popular on the island, but now Sicilian balconies extravagant as ever, would be placed next to severe classical columns. Dufourney began designing in Palermo. In 1789 his "Entrance Temple" to the Botanical Gardens in Palermo was the first building in Sicily in a style based on the Greek Doric order, it is pure Neoclassical architecture, and it was a sign of things to come.
However, it was Dufourny's great friend and fellow architect Marvuglia who was to preside of the gradual decline of Sicilian Baroque. In 1784 he designed the Palazzo Riso-Belmonte, [10], it the finest example of this period of architectural transition, combining both Baroque and Palladian motifs, built around a arcaded courtyard providing Baroque masses of light and shade - Chiaroscuro. The main facade too punctuated by giant pilasters had Baroque features, but the sky line was unbroken. The pilasters were undecorated simple and ionic, they supported an undecorated entablature. Above the windows were classical unbroken pediments. Sicilian Baroque was waning.
The second reason for the gradual decline in the development of Sicilies Baroque and building in general - the money was running out. During the 17th century the aristocracy has lived principally on their landed estates, tending and improving them, and as a result their income also. During the 18th century the nobility gradually migrated towards the cities in particular Palermo to enjoy the social delights of the Viceroy's court and Catania. Their town palazzi's grew in size and splendour to the detriment of the abandoned estates, which were still expected to provide the revenue. The land agents left to run the estates over time became less efficient or corrupt, often both. As a consequences aristocratic incomes fell. The aristocracy borrowed money using the estates as surety, until the value of the neglected estates fell below the money borrowed against them. Now Sicily was as politically unstable as its nobility were financially. Ruled from Naples since by the weak Fredinand IV and his dominant wife, the decline of Sicily had reached the point of no return, long before 1798 and again in 1806 when the King was forced by the invading French to flee Naples to Sicily. The French were kept at bay from Sicily only by an expeditionary force of 17,000 British troops. Sicily was in effect, if not name, now ruled by Britain. King Ferdinand then in 1811 imposed the first taxes, at a single stroke alienating his aristocracy.
The tax was rescinded by the British in 1812, who then imposed a British style constitution on the island, as a direct consequence a middle class bourgeoisie immediately began to flourish. This coupled with the social and political upheaval of the Risorgimento in the 19th century, which followed , meant the Sicilian aristocracy was a doomed class. Furthermore, as a result of their neglect and dereliction of "noblesse oblige" an essential element of the feudal system, the countryside was often ruled by bandits, and the once country villas decaying. For the Sicilian upper class their building mania over.
However, the British influence in Sicily was to provide Sicilian Baroque with one last flourish. Muvaglia recognising the new fashion for all thing British developed the style he had first cautiously used at Palazzo Riso-Belmonte in 1784, it combined some of the plainer more sold elements of Baroque coupled with Palladian motifs [11], rather than palladian designs. The late Sicilian baroque was similar in style to the Baroque popular in England at the beginning of the 18th century, popularised by Sir John Vanbrugh with such edifices as Blenheim Palace. However, this was a brief flash in the pan and the Neoclassic style soon was dominant. Few aristocrats could now afford to build, and the new style was mainly used in public and civil buildings, such as those at the Botanical Gardens in Palermo.
Sicilian architects, even, Andrea Giganti once a competent architect in Baroque, now began to design in the Neoclassical style. As with the early days of Sicilian Baroque the first buildings of the new Neoclassical era were copies, but in this case of Neo classical buildings in the so envied and fashionable France. Giganti's Villa Galletti at Bagheria is clearly inspired by the work of Ange-Jacques Gabriel. Thus Sicilian Baroque was superseded by French Neoclassicism.
Final period
As with all architectural styles eventually people eventually tired of Baroque, in some parts of Europe it metamorphosed into the Rococo. This was not the case in Sicily. No longer ruled by Austria, Sicily since 1735 officially the Kingdom of Sicily was ruled by the King of Naples, Ferdinand IV, hence Palermo was in constant association with the principal capital Naples, where there was architectutally a growing reversion to the more classical styles of architecture, coupled with this many of the more cultured Sicilian nobility developed a fashionable obsession for all things French - from philosophy to arts, fashion and architecture. Many of them visited Paris in pursuit of their interests returning with the latest architectural engravings and theoretical treatises. The French architect Léon Dufourny came to Sicily between 1787 and 1794 to study and analyse the ancient Greek temples on the Island, thus it was that Sicilians rediscovered their ancient past which with its classical idioms was now the height of fashion. The change in tastes did not come about overnight, Baroque was still popular on the island, but now Sicilian balconies extravagant as ever, would be placed next to severe classical columns. Dufourney began designing in Palermo. In 1789 his "Entrance Temple" to the Botanical Gardens in Palermo was the first building in Sicily in a style based on the Greek Doric order, it is pure Neoclassical architecture, and it was a sign of things to come.
However, it was Dufourny's great friend and fellow architect Marvuglia who was to preside of the gradual decline of Sicilian Baroque. In 1784 he designed the Palazzo Riso-Belmonte, [12], it the finest example of this period of architectural transition, combining both Baroque and Palladian motifs, built around a arcaded courtyard providing Baroque masses of light and shade - Chiaroscuro. The main facade too punctuated by giant pilasters had Baroque features, but the sky line was unbroken. The pilasters were undecorated simple and ionic, they supported an undecorated entablature. Above the windows were classical unbroken pediments. Sicilian Baroque was waning.
The second reason for the gradual decline in the development of Sicilies Baroque and building in general - the money was running out. During the 17th century the aristocracy has lived principally on their landed estates, tending and improving them, and as a result their income also. During the 18th century the nobility gradually migrated towards the cities in particular Palermo to enjoy the social delights of the Viceroy's court and Catania. Their town palazzi's grew in size and splendour to the detriment of the abandoned estates, which were still expected to provide the revenue. The land agents left to run the estates over time became less efficient or corrupt, often both. As a consequences aristocratic incomes fell. The aristocracy borrowed money using the estates as surety, until the value of the neglected estates fell below the money borrowed against them. Now Sicily was as politically unstable as its nobility were financially. Ruled from Naples since by the weak Fredinand IV and his dominant wife, the decline of Sicily had reached the point of no return, long before 1798 and again in 1806 when the King was forced by the invading French to flee Naples to Sicily. The French were kept at bay from Sicily only by an expeditionary force of 17,000 British troops. Sicily was in effect, if not name, now ruled by Britain. King Ferdinand then in 1811 imposed the first taxes, at a single stroke alienating his aristocracy.
The tax was rescinded by the British in 1812, who then imposed a British style constitution on the island, as a direct consequence a middle class bourgeoisie immediately began to flourish. This coupled with the social and political upheaval of the Risorgimento in the 19th century, which followed , meant the Sicilian aristocracy was a doomed class. Furthermore, as a result of their neglect and dereliction of "noblesse oblige" an essential element of the feudal system, the countryside was often ruled by bandits, and the once country villas decaying. For the Sicilian upper class their building mania over.
However, the British influence in Sicily was to provide Sicilian Baroque with one last flourish. Muvaglia recognising the new fashion for all thing British developed the style he had first cautiously used at Palazzo Riso-Belmonte in 1784, it combined some of the plainer more sold elements of Baroque coupled with Palladian motifs [13], rather than palladian designs. The late Sicilian baroque was similar in style to the Baroque popular in England at the beginning of the 18th century, popularised by Sir John Vanbrugh with such edifices as Blenheim Palace. However, this was a brief flash in the pan and the Neoclassic style soon was dominant. Few aristocrats could now afford to build, and the new style was mainly used in public and civil buildings, such as those at the Botanical Gardens in Palermo.
Sicilian architects, even, Andrea Giganti once a competent architect in Baroque, now began to design in the Neoclassical style. As with the early days of Sicilian Baroque the first buildings of the new Neoclassical era were copies, but in this case of Neo classical buildings in the so envied and fashionable France. Giganti's Villa Galletti at Bagheria is clearly inspired by the work of Ange-Jacques Gabriel. Thus Sicilian Baroque was superseded by French Neoclassicism.
Legacy
While Sicilian baroque is today recognised as an architectural style, largely due to the work of Anthony Blunt, on of the few serious studies of the subject, much of the decay and ruinous state of preservation must fall on not just the owners of the palazzi, but the polical agendas of successive socialist governments. Some of the finest Baroque villas and palazzi are still bombed ruins, where no attempt has been mad to restore, or even secure them. Tose in good repair are often sub-divided into offices or appartments, their Baroque interiors dismantled, divided and sold.
Those few remaining members of the Sicilian aristocracy who still inhabit their ancestral palazzi have for the mostpart have refrained from filling their gardens with wild animals to lure in the masses to view their homes (ironically unlike their English counterparts who spurned baroque as vulgar exess). The Princes, Marquesses, and Counts of Sicily have preferred to live in splendid isolation surrounded, often, by beauty and decay, this is not because of a disdain for the masses, or an indifference to their heritage, but more a bunker mentality, for years penalised by exhaustive taxes, it is only today they and the state are awaking up to the possibility that if action is not taken soon, it will be too late for this particulat part of the Siclian heritage
As Sicily now becomes a more politically stable and secure, and less corrupt, environment the Baroque palazzi are slowly beginning to open their doors to the eager paying public, albeit an American and British public, rather than Italian. A few years ago the Gangi Palace ballroom was alone in its status as having been a filmset, today long shrouded salons and ballrooms are hosting corporate and public events. Some palazzi are offering a bed and breakfast service, with a "dine with the Marchese" as an optional extra. Perhaps one day all the baroque palazzi of Sicily will be restored to their former splendour for all to admire. The style is almost part of the Sicilian identity, more so than any other architectural style elsewhere in the world.
Notable architects of Sicilian Baroque (sub pages)
- Antonello Gagini.(1478-1536)
- Giulio Lasso. Notable building: Quattro Canti, Palermo 1610.
- Guarino Guarini. (1624 - 1683)
- Tomasso Napoli. (unknown) Notable building: Villa Palagonia 1705.
- Andrea Palma.(1664-1730) Notable buiding; Syracuse Cathedral 1728
- Giovanni Battista Vaccarini. (1702 - 1768) City architect of Catania 1730.
- Rosario Gagliardi. (1698 -1762). Notable building: Curch of S. Giorgio, Ragusa 1738
- Vincenzo Sinatra. (unknown) Notable building: Palazzo Ducezio 1746.
- Paolo Labisi. (unknown) Noable building: Palazzo Villadorata c.1750
- Stefano Ittar. (1730 -1789) Notable building: Chiesa della Collegiata, Catania 1768.
- Luciano Alì.
- Andrea Giganti.
- Giuseppe Venanzio Marvuglia.(1729 – 1814)
Footnotes
- ^ Messina: The Sicilian city most closely related for geographical reasons to mainland Italy, once contained some of Sicily's finest buildings. The city's history though is probably amongst the most turbulent and catastrophic of Sicily. Its, almost unique to Sicly, renaissance buildings shared the repeated misfortunes of the city. not only was much destroyed in the quake of 1693, but again by quakes in 1783, and yet again in 1908. What precious buildings remained to record Messina's glorious architectural past were destroyed in the bombing raids on 1943. However destruction caused by methods beyond the city's control were not the only cause of its misfortune. The city's rebellion against the Spanish, supported by the French, in 1676 failed. The Spanish then withdrew the city's privileges and powers beginning a huge decline in it's wealth and prosperity. The city sank into poverty and obscurity. The Porta Grazia, the entrance to the long destroyed citadel built by the Spanish to suppress the townspeople is one of the few remaining pre 1693 buildings to survive.
- ^ Friederich Munter 18th century travel writer.
- ^ Terra del Sole
- ^ Professor Anthony Blunt
- ^ "Palazzo" (pl. Palazzi) translates as "Palace". In mainland Europe this can refer to any large town house. Often much smaller than the term implies in the English speaking world.
- ^ Mary Miers. Country Life Magazine. 1 Nov. 2004
- ^ Oppinion Professor Anthony Blunt, "Sicilian Baroque"
- ^ Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach had begun to rebuild Schönbrunn Palace in 1686 in a simple form of Baroque, this form was later to be reproduced in Sicily in the final years of its Baroque era. The palace also had an external staircase (removed in 1746) similar to those later to evolve in Sicily.
- ^ The Palazzo is today a shell, badly damaged by bombing in World war II)
- ^ Church of San Francesco di Sales Late Sicilian Baroque, completed 1818
External links
- Val di Noto
- Churches of Ragusa
- Photographs of some Sicilian baroque churches
- Buildings of Ragusa
- The Sicilian aristocracy
References
- Blunt, Anthony. Sicilian Baroque. 1968. Weidenfeld and Nicolson Ltd.
- Hamel,Pasquale. Breve storia deela societa siciliana (1790-1980). Palermo Sellerio.
- Du Pays, A J. Guide d'Italie et Sicile. 1877. Hachette.
- Drago, Francesco Palazzolo. Famiglie nobili sicilian. Palermo. Arnaldo Forni
- Gefen, Gérard. Sicily, Land of the Leopard Princes. 2001. Tauris Parke Books.
- Barocco ibleo (Italian)