The Life of Gian Lorenzo Bernini by Domenico Bernini - Personal Statement Example

The Life of Gian Lorenzo Bernini by Domenico Bernini 'The Life of Gian Lorenzo Bernini' is one of the very important textual writings written by Domenico Bernini about the biography of his father, Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Franco Mormando has translated it to English, and has adorned the libraries of many scholars and students who want to peep into the beauties of modern Italian art of the early times. This reading is a sophisticated, precise and decipherable translation of the actual text written by Domenico Bernini.

It definitely imprisons the crux and soul of the original Italian art while giving great consideration to the subtleness and delicacies of linguistics and vocabulary. The biography is both a historical and critical evaluation of the life history of the subject. In the reading given here (Chapter V), the reader comes to know how Bernini’s horizon broadened after Barberini assumed papacy and acquired the role of Pope Urban VIII. Bernini had always listened to the advice of his benevolent pontiff, as the reader comes to know from the reading.

Bernini learned art and mastered his artistic competencies. This role made him a very significant artist as he was no longer producing art for private residences only. He took his art on a larger scale. The positions he achieved enabled him to introduce his art at the city stage level. No wonder that is why he was appointed as the Chief Architect of St Peter’s. His art regarding public architecture also refined his portrait technique, as the reader comes to know how his artistic abilities evolved from small level to such a high scale that his paintings adorned the principal residences of some of the most illustrious princes of Europe.

His drawings called Caricatures are an important addition to the early Italian art. The reading also gives a brief yet interesting description of how a sculpture differs from a painting. Bernini describes that a sculpture requires the sculptor to give great consideration to the dimensions of the figure. The sculptor has to conform to the magnitudes and proportions. What is large must remain large and what is small must remain small. On the other hand, the artist has great flexibility while creating a painting.

He can mold the dimensions according to his choice and vision. Reading about this contrast as described by Bernini is really very interesting. It is also interesting to read that Bernini wanted his students to find beauty in art to excel in their profession. To conclude, the reader feels immense interest while going through the distinguished intellect of the Roman Baroque. Mormando has definitely been very successful in making the Italian text available to those who do not know the language, thus, satisfying their curiosity about the Italian art and the life of the subject.

Not only the text is meticulously analyzed, but the escorting commentary is also very informative and comprehensive at the same time because it refers to a wide variety of secondary sources to support the text. This makes this text an important addition to the seventeenth-century studies.