La nuova idea di cupola : teatri sacri e profani nell’Europa d’età barocca tra storia e rappresentazione

Abstract

A remarkable and diverse series of ceiling structures emerged between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in several European cities, aiming to offer a theatrical approach to architectural space. This development unfolded amidst the widespread use of frescoed ceilings or hemispherical domes supported by drums and pendentives inspired by Roman models. Designing and building systems consisting of multiple domes, open with oculi, superimposed or surmounted by lanterns, adorned with frescoes or galleries, and featuring light and music chambers required expertise in optics, perspective, acoustics, and, in some cases, even stereotomy. These skills were necessary to transform spaces in both religious and civil architecture into fascinating and mysterious sacred and secular “theatres." Prominent figures in the history of Baroque architecture engaged in this effort, including François Mansart, Louis Le Vau, Pieter Post, Guarino Guarini, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Andrea Pozzo, Filippo Juvarra, and Giovanni Amico. They aimed to fulfill the expectations of generous and authoritative patrons such as kings, princes, and the most powerful and widespread religious order of the time: the Jesuits. A cross-cutting yet vertically comprehensive history of the application of these unique structures in architecture and the ways in which certain variations met with success has not been outlined thus far. The analysis and comparison of different solutions implemented or only conceptualised (at least those known) and the historiographies of the various territories involved in this international debate aim to significant gaps in the state of the art. Throughout the investigated chronological period, numerous famous and lesser-known examples of these structures can be found throughout Europe and the Mediterranean, discovered in diverse contexts, including major capitals as well as so-called "peripheral" centers. While substantial contributions came from France and Italy, where the initial experiments and the production of documented series took place, other deserving lands and countries were also engaged in this narrative due to the originality of their achievements. Examples include the Netherlands and the "remote" and "Mediterranean" Sicily, where a unique series was constructed. However, it lacks historical iconography, thorough investigations, and comparisons. Historical research in this field has relied on archival sources and the identification of models disseminated through engravings that reached the island. The analytical study of these solutions, designed to be perceived from below and in perspective while maintaining enigmatic morphologies and lighting sources to evoke surprise, has made extensive use of advanced surveying techniques and digital modeling. This was particularly relevant in cases where the domes were inaccessible or in a general state of abandonment.