Exhibitions
Borromini and the Baroque World (Palazzo del' Exposizioni, Rome, till 28 February)
Fearful symmetry
Selina Mills
Most of Rome's tourists, when enjoy- ing their 'Baroque city breaks', find them- selves lured by the work of Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Famed throughout 17th-century Europe for his flamboyant style and fluidity in sculpture and architecture, his fountains, porticos, statues, and churches abound in this holy city. Yet much of the Bernini beat also includes the innovative architecture of Francesco Borromini, Bernini's contempo- rary and rival, and currently the subject of a fascinating but frustrating exhibition at the Palazzo dell' Exposizioni. Apart from an exhibition in Lugano last summer, this is the first major Borromini exhibition in a while. He was largely forgot- ten in the 19th century and consigned to the world of scholarship in the 20th, so the 400th anniversary of his birth provides a wonderful opportunity to give him some well-deserved publicity. Born in Bissone, by Lake Lugano, in what is now Switzerland, on 26 September 1599, Francesco Castelli (he took on his other family name in 1627) came from a long line of stonemasons and builders from Northern Europe. He arrived in Rome in 1614, after training to be a stonecutter in Milan, and became an apprentice to Carlo Maderno, the illustrious Vatican architect. By 1629 he was chief assistant to Bemini, overseeing such works as the Palazzo Bar- berini and the famous Baldacchino at St Peter's. He gained his first independent commission to build the church and monastery of San Carlo alle Quattro Pontane in 1634.
What is instantly striking about the draw- ings on show is the extent to which Borro- mini based his designs on geometry rather than, as was the Renaissance and early Baroque way, the proportions of the human body. Referring to his designs as 'his children' (over 700 are on show — along with reduced scale models and com- puter-generated views of his work) Borro- mini strove for simplicity, symmetry and economy, in sharp contrast to contempo- raries who relied on lavish and rhetorical designs. The plan of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, for example, built in economical travertine, is composed of a series of inter- secting ovals covered by an oval dome, whereby not one dimension is larger than a single pier of St Peter's. His design of the Church of San Ivo alla Sapienza is based on a six-point star where the height of the dome is equal to the star's diameter. He also delighted in playing with perspective; the famous colonnade at Palazzo Spada being made to look much longer than it actually is. What is also significant is that this exhibi- tion does not focus heavily on the notori- ous and mythic rift that developed between Borromini and Bemini, but instead concen- trates on Borromini's career, work and per- sonality. While it is true that Pope Urban VIII favoured Bemini, and that Borromini was incensed at his colleague's success, he was also a gloomy, often frustrated artist, prone to outbursts of rage and melancholia with his own patrons and stonemasons, gaining a reputation for being a pedant for detail. Many critics considered his designs 'Gothic' — a slight that at the time was tantamount to declaring him a Barbarian. Yet other artists (including Bemini) recog- nised and applauded the audacity of his designs, and tried to gain him more com- missions. His increasing sense of outrage and bitterness at Bernini's success and his own frustration at not beginning or com- pleting projects, drove him to fits of depression which finally overwhelmed him in 1664. On 2 August, after burning all the drawings in his possession (the ones on show were rescued from his clients), he threw himself on a sword, and died hours later in the church that had started his career 30 years before, San Carlo. At his own request he was buried anonymously in Francesco Borromini: Galleria di Palazzo Carpegna the grave of his teacher and friend, Mademo.
Architectural exhibitions, of course, are different from their sculptural or pictorial cousins in that they are obliged to show more than just sketches to invite our inter- est. This one aims to be historically infor- mative and aesthetically pleasing —there are different sections exploring Classical and Gothic architecture, papal patronage and Borromini's work on individual build- ings. Yet it fails on many levels, most notably for its badly lit and badly placed information regarding the paintings, mod- els, books and medals on display. Despite research being in the pipeline for more than five years (scholars from all over the world have been involved in documenting his drawings), it is as if this has all been thrown together at the last moment, the links between the different sections being non-existent or weak.
Borromini's life was a sad and frustrated one where, in an age of patronage and favouritism, he did not have the personality to promote himself. But 400 years later, in an age of media hype and opportunity, it is even sadder that we have still to do his tal- ents justice.
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