What’s Up? The Jesuits and Ceiling Painting in Early Modern Rome--Kelsey Stelly

During our time in Rome we have seen many amazing ceiling paintings in many of the Churches we have been able to go to. I remember the first church that I walked into during this trip and looked up just to be amazed by the elaborate art and architecture of the ceiling.

One of my ultimate favorite ceiling paintings that we have seen during this month is the ceiling of the church of Sant'Ignazio. Upon walking into this church I was in awe of the architecture and paintings surrounding the churches sides, but after looking up I was amazed. The ceiling painting was completed by Pozzo, and is a fresco entitled, “The Triumph of Sant' Ignazio”. In this church, the marbled columns continue all the way up to the ceiling. This ceiling is amazing because it seems as if the sides of the church go up all the way into Heaven. It is hard to tell where the architecture ends and where the paint begins, done by the artist to form a kind of three dimensional effect. This effect is called quadratura. It is defined as the use of architectural elements in painted works in order to create an illusion that the space is expanding into another, Heavenly realm. Sant’Ignazio’s ceiling is one of the best examples that I have seen of this being done. This quadratura really started to grow in popularity during the Baroque period, as it perfectly defines the Baroque period itself. It is theatrical and grand, making a simple ceiling look as if it expands for miles into Heaven. When looking at this particular ceiling, it is incredibly hard to tell where the architecture is real and actually stops and the painting continues. It all flows incredibly into one picture of Ignatius being welcomed into Heaven. The dome itself is extremely interesting, as it is actually a flat part of the ceiling. Pozzo makes it look as if it is an actual dome that extends upward, due to the fact that the Jesuit’s did not have enough money to actually insert a dome into the Church. If you stand at the best point in the Church and look up, the dome looks whole and not flat due to the illusionistic perspective Pozzo had while painting it. It is certainly one of the most remarkable things I have seen during this trip.

The angels hovering around Heaven in this painting are also amazing to look at when viewing this painting. Every angel’s wings appear as if they are coming directly out of the painting and flying around. The angels embody movement and make the scene feel much more real. The viewer can see every feather in each wing of some angels, along with the movement of flight in motion from others.

An extremely interesting aspect of this painting that should be remembered is the fact that is was done in a Jesuit church for a Jesuit purpose. Jesuit’s picked the art that would be in their churches by choosing art that reminded, taught, and moved people into the Catholic faith. This is demonstrated in this piece of art especially. If you look at the four corners of the painting, there are depictions of the four continents. This referred to Ignatius spreading the word of Jesus to each continent and therefore, being welcomed into Heaven in the middle of the painting. A main point of this painting was to reaffirm the Catholic faith following the reformation, and showing such an important figure who taught about the faith reaching the ultimate end-goal of Heaven was a great tool in doing so.

Another one of my favorite Churches with an amazing ceiling painting was Il Gesù. This was the Jesuit church built in the heart of Rome, and built to be the mecca of the Jesuits. Along with the last painting, this is also a Baroque ceiling painting. The scene in this painting depicts the “Triumph of the Most Holy Name of Jesus” and was done as a fresco by Baciccio. It is another amazing example of the Baroque use of quadratura.

Directly in the light of this ceiling painting is the name of Jesus, which is the focal point of the whole church. This is similar to the way that the last ceiling painting was showcasing Loyola, who was the focal point of that Church. Around Jesus’ name, blessed people and angels are kneeling to the side being shined upon by the light of Heaven, while the damned and unholy are almost depicted to be falling away from the light. They are depicted this way by the addition of stucco around the architecture to show them coming away from the painting, in an almost three-dimensional way. This is a very Baroque tool to use, as it is extremely theatrical the way that the damned are falling away and being sent away from the light of Heaven. This church adds in stained glass and sculptures to increase the theatrical qualities and tell the story being shown in the painting. It also makes the borders of architecture ambiguous, which was simply not done in Renaissance and Medieval times. A truly amazing aspect of this is the way that the artist created a shadow onto the architecture, really showing that the scene is almost as if part of the ceiling of the building was removed and Heaven was directly above it. It makes the viewer question what exactly is painting and what is structure. The Gesù’s ceiling painting’s ultimate theme is more of a triumphant theme than the one in Sant’Ignazio, but it is also one that can teach and move. It is showing the need for faith to be received by Jesus into Heaven. It is almost a lesson to those in the Catholic faith of what could happen to heretics that are against them. There is an intense juxtaposition between the light of the holy and the darkness of the damned.

Both ceilings are incredible depictions of Baroque art, especially within a Jesuit mindset. I will never forget this amazing trip to see these churches and the art they contain. No other church will compare.