Bernini's Biographies

Critical Essays

Maarten Delbeke editor Steven F Ostrow editor Evonne Levy editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Pennsylvania State University Press

Published:11th Jan '07

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Bernini's Biographies cover

Unique among early modern artists, the Baroque painter, sculptor, and architect Gianlorenzo Bernini was the subject of two monographic biographies published shortly after his death in 1680: one by the Florentine connoisseur and writer Filippo Baldinucci (1682), and the second by Bernini’s son, Domenico (1713).

This interdisciplinary collection of essays by historians of art and literature marks the first sustained examination of the two biographies, first and foremost as texts. A substantial introductory essay considers each biography’s author, genesis, and foundational role in the study of Bernini. Nine essays combining art-historical research with insights from philology, literary history, and art and literary theory offer major new insights into the multifarious connections between biography, art history, and aesthetics, inviting readers to rethink Bernini’s life, art, and milieu.

Contributors are Eraldo Bellini, Heiko Damm, John D. Lyons, Sarah McPhee, Tomaso Montanari, Rudolf Preimesberger, Robert Williams, and the editors.

“Although there is more biographical writing on the incomparable Gian Lorenzo Bernini than on any other early modern artist, including Michelangelo), the investigation of these writings remains surprisingly incomplete. This fascinating and highly original book is therefore a welcome addition to the literature, for it both consolidates our present understanding of these biographies, which can be traced to Bernini himself, and raises important questions about these writings for future consideration. Bernini’s Biographies will therefore be of great interest to scholars of art history, literature, and the social history of art alike.”

—Paul Barolsky, University of Virginia


“In addition to bringing together various methodologies to bear upon the study of Bernini’s vite, this work also seeks to unravel the Gordian knot of the authorship of the biographies. . . . Taken as a whole, this collection of essays provides a series of departure points for future studies in the history of Bernini’s biographies, the life of Bernini himself, and artistic biography in general. . . . Despite the seeming contradiction between engaging closely with the history and genesis of Bernini’s biographies while simultaneously interrogating them from various literary, historical, and philological viewpoints, these essays are an immensely useful addition to the field.”

—Kristin A. Triff Renaissance Quarterly


“This is an important book that is essential reading for anyone engaged in the study of Bernini and the Baroque, and indeed a cautionary and exemplary tale for historians who take artists’ lives at face value. . . . Bernini’s Biographies is a challenging read but a rewarding one . . . [which] brings together and epitomises the problems and debates surrounding the construction of an artist as a historical and/or literary figure. It will prove useful for those interested in this difficult and complex area—the confluence of art history and literary theory.”

—Carol M. Richardson The Art Book


“As an edited volume of scholarly essays, this collection sets a new standard for excellence. The quality of all contributions is uniformly high—something that can rarely be said of such collections.”

—Sheila McTighe Oxford Art Journal

ISBN: 9780271029016

Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 26mm

Weight: 739g

440 pages