Welcome to "Art & the Jesuits in Early Modern Rome"



The Eternal City, caput mundi....Rome has captivated and perplexed inhabitants and visitors alike for the last 3,000 years. With an eye to history, culture, art, and religion, students of Loyola University New Orleans' Italy Study Abroad program offer their take on the "live-and-learn" experience in one of the world's most fascinating cities.

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Spectacle, Patronage, and the Jesuits in Baroque Rome-Teresa Berner

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Here we are, the last blogpost of this four week series. The time I spent here in Rome was one the most educational experiences of my life.  Actually being in the presence of these works of art that I have learned about over the course of my life has been surreal. This week was no different. This week was all about the spectacle, patronage, and the Jesuits in Baroque Rome. The most evident spot of Jesuit patronage and spectacle that we went to this week was the church of S. Vitale. It is an ancient church that was renovated by the Jesuits during the Catholic Reformation. The Jesuits knew that they had to educate people about the reforms of the Catholic Church. They thought that by reminding the public about Catholic martyrs who showed the ultimate sign of faith by dying for their beliefs, people would be inspired to come back to the church. Along the walls of the nave are paintings of different martyrs. There are paintings of the martyrdom of St. Vitale in the apse of t...
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What's Up? The Jesuits and Ceiling Painting in Early Modern Rome- Teresa Berner

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In the High Renaissance and Baroque Italy, decoration was everything. Most of the decorations were frescos or mosaics. The most important frescos and mosaics were commissioned by Catholic churches. During the High Renaissance, the decoration was about evoking classical antiquity, balance, and harmony. The Baroque period was more about the grandiose and dramatic. The aspects of both of these time periods can be found in churches all across Rome. The most impressive decorations are found on the ceilings of the churches. One of the most famous High Renaissance ceiling painting is in the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo. An example of Baroque ceiling painting is in the church of St. Ignatius by Andrea Pozzo, SJ. Both of these ceiling paintings show the Catholic church’s appreciation of art in the High Renaissance and Baroque periods.  Sistine Chapel ceiling Michelangelo’s ceiling in the Sistine Chapel is one of the best examples of High Renaissance painting. The ceiling is made ...
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Michael Murphy - What’s Up? The Jesuits and Ceiling Painting in Early Modern Rome

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            Baroque ceiling painting comes from a long tradition of ceiling decoration originating in the Gothic period. By the time of the Italian Renaissance, artists such as Michelangelo and Raphael were producing some of their most spectacular masterpieces on fresco-covered ceilings. The advent of linear perspective, one of the most important inventions in Renaissance art, allowed artists to create trompe l’oeil paintings that, when viewed from the correct angle, gave the illusion of a greater space beyond the physical surface of the painting. This kind of perspectival illusion very naturally lent itself to the theatricality and drama that would rise to prominence in the Baroque period, and usage of illusionistic ceiling painting in combination with architectural design became a popular artistic element in many buildings, especially Catholic Churches. Two very famous Baroque ceilings occupy the naves of the two most impor...
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