While the Protestants criticized the cult of images, the Catholic Church ardently embraced them.
1600–1700
Beginner's guide
Catholic artists painted primarily for the Church—while Protestants in Holland painted for the middle class.
videos + essays
A-Level: Sample set of works for the Baroque in Catholic Europe
Discover paintings by Rubens, sculpture by Bernini, landscapes by Rosa, and architecture by Borromini.
A-Level: Francis Bacon and the Scientific Revolution
What is truth? Bacon argued for experimentation; like him, artisans and alchemists promoted direct observation.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Pluto and Proserpina (or The Rape of Proserpina)
Pluto hoists up Proserpina. She resists, pushing him away. Their desires clash, creating a dynamic composition.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Bust of Medusa
She’s a monster, but in this poignant marble bust, Medusa becomes a victim of her own plight.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Apollo and Daphne
Skin transforms into bark, limbs sprout branches, and stone softens into flesh. What a perfect subject for Bernini.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Ecstasy of Saint Teresa
Gasp! Stone floats and light pours down from—where, exactly? Bernini creates a theatre for spiritual experience.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Baldacchino, Saint Peter’s
Over 60 feet tall, this daunting bronze canopy is part architecture, part sculpture—and part beehive.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, David
Duck! This slingshot may never fire, but Bernini fools us. We can feel David gathering strength to battle Goliath.
A-Level: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Cathedra Petri (Chair of St. Peter)
Did St. Peter sit here? Dizzying but unified, light and gold glorify this sacred place.
A-Level: Velázquez, Juan de Pareja
How do you paint your own slave? Painter Julie Mehretu explores Velázquez’s answer to this troubling question.
A-Level: Diego Velázquez, Las Meninas
This puzzling painting about painting is half genre scene, half family portrait. But what’s on the large canvas?
A-Level: Velázquez, Vulcan’s Forge
Don’t strike the messenger! Interrupted at his forge, a horrified Vulcan looks ready to hammer Apollo.
