The Palazzo Barberini is the primary familial palace to the Barberini family in Rome, whose height of influence came under the pontificate of Urban VIII, otherwise known as Maffeo Barberini. In essence, the palace was built to house the large family that had recently arrived in Rome and was divided into two sections, the secular and the clerical. Above all, the grand palace’s propagandistic purposes were to reaffirm the power and position of the Barberini family and the Pope, both of which quickly rose to power.
The property that sits along the Quirinal hill went through a series of owners before being acquired by the Barberinis. In the middle of the sixteenth century the land belonged to Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi, “who kept a famous collection of antiquities and had a small casino built there,” (Magnuson 272). Later, in the 1580s, the Sforza family had a palace built at a right angle to the casino over the Quirinal. When the cardinals could not decide between two papal candidates in 1623, Cardinal Maffeo Barberini was elected as the new pope, taking on the name Urban VIII. On December 18, 1625, the new papal nephew, Cardinal Francesco Barberini purchased the Sforza palace from Duke Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and the entire land between Via della Quattro Fontane and Via Pia (now known as Via XX Settembre). The plan was to enlarge the current palace into a grand estate, fit for the rising and growing Barberini family.
The Palazzo Barberini benefitted from its construction being led by four of the premier baroque artists Maderno, Bernini, and Borromini, as well as Pietro da Cortona for his work on the central fresco. Urban VIII commissioned Carlo Maderno, known as the “pope’s architect”, to design his palace. Maderno then enlisted Francesco Borromini and Gian Lorenzo Bernini (who Urban VIII was extremely close to). Unfortunately on January 31, 1629 Maderno passed away before most of the construction had even begun. Urban VIII proceeded to turn the commission of the Palazzo over to his good friend Bernini, overlooking Borromini, who many considered to be more influential in the design process. There was even speculation that Taddeo Barberini (Urban VIII’s nephew and head of the secular side of the family) was influential in the design and construction plans.
(Bernini)
After construction of the palace was completed in 1633, Pietro da Cortona was commissioned to construct an enormous fresco to cover the ceiling of the Grand Salone in the palace. His piece, entitled “Divine Providence”, is one of the more memorable ceiling frescos from the baroque period. Cortona worked on “Divine Providence” for six years, beginning in 1633 and finishing in 1639. While it is certain that “Divine Providence” is a work of Cortona, other aspects of the palace are much more difficult to give singular credit to.
There is much controversy surrounding Bernini receiving much of the credit for the design of the Palazzo Barberini. One detailed design of the ground floor by Borromini includes notes by Maderno, meaning “[Maderno] had at least approved the final design,” (Magnuson 274). With Maderno being quite sick and Borromini being much more skilled in architecture than Bernini, many believe (in the 17th century and today) that the Palazzo Barberini was mainly the fruition of Borromini’s hard work. Even Cardinal Francesco Barberini was quoted as telling Cardinal Virgilio Spada that the Palazzo “’was a great part the design of Borromini,’” (Morrissey 90). It is believed that Bernini received the commission after Maderno’s death solely because of his close personal relationship with Urban VIII, in spite of his lack of skills in architecture. Jake Morrissey quotes historian and biographer Filippo Baldinucci, who said that “since Borromini carried out the building works of that pontificate so well, Bernini drew the remunerations and salary for the building works of both Saint Peter’s and Palazzo Barberini. . . And never did he give Borromini anything for his labors of so many years, except good words and grand promises,” (Morrissey 91). While both artists definitely made their own contributions, it seems as though Bernini took undeserved credit for Borromini’s work.
(Borromini)
The design of the Palazzo Barberini was the first of its kind and a break from the designs of palaces in the Renaissance. The palazzo is a massive H-shaped residence that resides on the unevenly sloped Quirinal hill. In an original drawing of the design of the palazzo Maderno had designed the palazzo to be more of a square block, along the lines of the Palazzo Farnese and other palaces of the Renaissance period (Norberg-Schulz 146). However this plan was abandoned to take advantage of the unique piece of land that was the Quirinal hill. Although there is an appearance of a grand square palace, it is actually two rectangular villas connected via the Great Loggia Façade, a three story arcade noted for its receding bays on the ground floor and the Grand Salone located on the second floor. The Grand Salone is where Cortona’s “Divine Providence” masterpiece is located. Also, instead of running parallel to the street as normal, the palace sits slightly angled away from the Via della Quattro Fontane. This was done purposefully by Maderno, however, so that the main family palace would face St. Peter’s (the Vatican) and Urban VIII, symbolizing the family’s connection to the church (Morrissey 88). The architects were very skilled at using the landscape to their advantage, which is also demonstrated in the construction of the two villas.
The two villas, while appearing similar from the front, actually are quite different and served different purposes. From the front, both villas appear to be equal in size at three-stories high. However, Maderno utilizes the sloping north side of the Quirinal hill to give the villa on that side another story (Morrissey 88). This extra space was crucial as this villa on the north side was to house the secular side of the family, built to accommodate Taddeo Barberini and his large and growing family after marrying Anna Colonna in 1627. The southern villa, which was also shorter in length than its northern counterpart, was built to house to clerical side of the family which included three Barberini cardinals, Antonio (Urban VIII’s brother) and Francesco and Antonio (his nephews). However this southern villa was more of Francesco’s personal palace and included such amenities as a library, theatre, and an art gallery, which was something the Barberini family became known for (Morrissey 89).
(side view of the Palazzo Barberini revealing the four-story secular side of the palace on the Quirinal Hill)
The two staircases by Borromini and Bernini are representative of the villas each is located in, and each artist’s personal style. Bernini’s staircase is located in the northern, secular villa, and in a stately manner the staircase is shaped in a square and consists of sixty-two steps, that have been described by some as a chore to ascend (Morrissey 91). Borromini’s staircase is located in the southern clerical villa. Unlike Bernini’s simplified staircase, Borromini’s is complex, oval in shape, and lined with intricate Doric columns along the balustrade. Borromini’s staircase is considered one of the highlights of the entire Palazzo Barberini, as it has been described as “organic” and that it draws “the eye upward” (Morrissey 90). The grand nature of Borromini’s staircase in comparison to Bernini’s is considered another piece of evidence that Borromini had more influence and stake in the overall design of the palace. Beyond the speculation about the true architect, these staircases serve the central purpose of connecting the two villas to the Great Loggia Façade and the Grand Salone.
(Borromini's spiraling staircase)
The Great Loggia Façade is one of the more innovative aspects of the palace. As previously stated, this grand arcade’s main purpose is to connect the two villas via the Grand Salone. However, another crucial aspect of the façade was to draw visitors through the center of the ground floor which leads into the garden on the other side. This is implemented by making the ground floor an open air gallery, or loggia. This loggia houses repeating bays, consisting of a series of arches supported on piers or columns. The arches decrease in size and number as one proceeds through the façade, which “creates a strong concentration along the main axis,” (Norberg-Schulz 147). As the number of arches on each bay decreases from seven, to five, to three, and finally ends in a semi-circular exedra (recess) the visitor is drawn towards the steps that lead to the gardens on the other side (Magnuson 275).
(Great Loggia Facade)
The Grand Salone is located above the arches in the Great Loggia Façade. This room encapsulates the top two floors of the grand loggia façade and runs as far back as the depths of the arcades. The main purpose of this room was to be a meeting and festival room for the family and their important guests. The greatest attraction in the room was Pietro da Cortona’s grand fresco “Allegory of the Divine Providence and Barberini Power.”
Cortona’s masterpiece was meant to solidify the affluence of the Barberini family for all those viewing and to justify Urban VIII’s quick rise to the papacy. These constant reassurances were necessary as the Barberini were merely textile merchants in Florence, during the reign of the powerful Medici family, two generations back. “Divine Providence”, which took six years to complete, was noted for its combination of Roman fresco and Venetian illusionism. Cortona even took a few years off in the middle of painting the piece to return to Venice in order to master the art of ceiling illusionism, which the Venetians were well known for (Schultz). The fresco contains allegories from mythology that are supposed to support both of the clerical and secular papal policies of Urban VIII such as the expansion of the papal states, his image as a pope of peace, government efforts to drive out any form of vice (immorality), the church’s success over heresy, and rising above worldly passions (Enggass and Brown 104). Cortona’s fresco is considered the focal point of papal propaganda under Urban VIII.
(Cortona's "Divine Providence)
I believe that it was Urban VIII’s and the Barberini family’s goal to create a grand palace to solidify their place as a noble family. The Barberinis did just this by breaking from typical Renaissance cortile type palaces such as the Palazzo Farnese by building what was considered more of a villa, but doing so in such a way that would influence Baroque art and architecture for years to come. Cortona’s “Divine Providence” is a prime example of this, as he combined the best elements of Roman fresco with Venetian ceiling illusionism to create a truly Baroque work of art that forces the reader to engage with its propagandistic message. Urban VIII and his family made sure that upon any visitor’s exit that he or she truly believed that this family’s rise to power was a product of divine guidance.
The Palazzo Barberini was innovative in that it was the first uniquely baroque papal family palace. Unlike anything that predated it, the palace was used as a means to justify the rise of the Barberini as well as the sudden pontificate of Urban VIII. In the tradition of grand triumphs, the architecture style of the palace harkens back to the time of the Roman emperors. The series of contracting bays were influential during the Baroque period, though this influence was mainly outside of Italy (Norberg-Schulz 147). Also, the great “horse-shoe” shape would also come to shape other villas in the Late Baroque period (Norberg-Schulz 147). Furthermore, both the dual staircase and Grand Salone connecting the two villas were emulated by “other architects, including Robert Adam, John Nash, and John Soane in London [during the mid-18th century], and McKim, Mean, and White at the Villard Houses in New York [in the early 20th century],” (Morrissey 89). When one visits the Palazzo Barberini today, one can’t help but be enthralled by the unique design of the contracting bays, Borromini’s spiral staircase, and the awe-inspiring nature of Cortona’s divine providence. The ability of Maderno, Bernini, and Borromini to purposefully lead the viewer to the desired areas of the palace simply through architecture keeps the Palazzo Barberini interesting even today.
Works Cited
Magnuson, Torgil. Rome in the Age of Bernini. Humanities Press, NJ, USA, 1982.
Morrissey, Jake. The Genius in the Design: Bernini, Borromini, and the Rivalry That Transformed Rome. Harper Collins Publishers Inc, NY 2005.
Norberg-Shulz, Christian. History of World Architecture: Baroque Architecture. New York: Rizzoli International Publications, 1986.
Enggass, Robert and Jonathan Brown. Italian & Spanish Art 1600-1750. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 1992
Schultz, Lisa. Personal Interview. 7 July 2010.
Photograph Sources:
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/B/bernini/bernini_self.jpg.html (Bernini)
http://www.essential-architecture.com/ARCHITECT/ARCH-Borromini.htm (Borromini)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/35814660@N06/3582123645/ (Borromini's staircase)
http://www.hoteleconomici.roma.it/musei-roma.asp (Great Loggia Facade)
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/03/23/travel/0323-JOURNEY_6.html (Divine Providence)
http://www.ontarioarchitecture.com/Classbaroque.htm (Palazzo Barberini side view)
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=985778 (Palazzo Barberini front view)
