Languages of Baroque / Models and ornaments; materials and techniques

The inventions of artists and architects were disseminated by means of drawings and/or models to even the most distant parts of the Catholic world where reproductive art prevailed.

The inventions of artists and architects were disseminated by means of drawings and/or models to even the most distant parts of the Catholic world where reproductive art prevailed. To match the demands of different commissioners, Baroque artists introduced new ornaments, techniques and materials and applied them to all kinds of objects including tables and chairs, cabinets, mirror frames and carriages. As an important element of style, ornamentation has a language of its own. It is this dialogue between applied art, furniture and architectural decoration that in the 17th-century develops into scrolling and vegetal ornaments, and which later were replaced by rocaille.

NameDynastyDetailsJustification
Model for the Equestrian Sculpture of King Louis XIVc. 1669Borghese Gallery
Rome, Latium, Italy
The terracotta was modelled by Bernini in Rome for an equestrian monument of Louis XIV, but the sculpture itself was executed by his pupils.
St. Andrew1740–1744Moravian Gallery, Brno
Governor's Palace, Brno, Moravia, Czech Republic
The drawing, one of only a few of its kind to survive, refers to the decoration of the bridge in Náměšť nad Oslavou. Josef Winterhalder came from a family of sculptors in Schwarzwald.
Cabinet on standc. 1670 Dubrovnik Cultural History Museum
Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, Croatia
A cabinet with the appearance of an architectural façade fitted with drawers for valuables. Richly decorated with painted glass panels framed with ebony and tortoiseshell, it stands on its own luxuriously carved and gilt base.
NameDynastyDetailsJustification
Cabinet on standc. 1670 Dubrovnik Cultural History Museum
Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, Croatia
The decorative repertoire of the glass compositions consist of figures, mythological scenes and views treated in the antique manner.
Cabinet on standc. 1670 Dubrovnik Cultural History Museum
Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, Croatia
The painted scenes are in the style of the Baroque painter Luca Giordano.
Sunflowers frame1699 (scratched on the frame)Museo di Arte Industriale e Galleria Davia Bargellini
Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
The extraordinary vivacity of this mirror frame testifies at a very early stage (1699) to the great skill and the refined taste of Bolognese Baroque carvers who looked to Rome and Venice for up-to-date ideas.
ConsoleFirst half of the eighteenth centuryPalazzo Tozzoni
Imola, Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
The base of the console comprises vine-shoots and grapes naturalistically intertwined using emphatically realistic carving.
Coach belonging to King João VFirst half of the 18th centuryNational Coach Museum
Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
Decorated in the Rococo style with French and Italian influences, the coach has a closed body with elegant curving lines and glazed windows. It is lined with red velvet and the rear wheels are decorated with the 12 signs of the zodiac.