Borromini, 1642, commissioned by Urban VIII
The construction of such a small church was commonplace in the mid- to late- seventeenth century, as the needs of large congregational spaces were met during the vast building campaigns of the 1500s. A small church such as this was meant for private worship, and its design reflects the changing attitudes towards spirituality at the time, evolving from a penitent and apologetic attitude in the sixteenth century to the hope of a transcendent and ecstatic experience in the seventeenth. In other words, these small churches were not built to be passive monuments, but rather to seek out and involve the viewer with radical and seemingly miraculous forms.
Sant'Ivo is centralized in plan, but its exact shape is impossible to define-- it is certainly not a shape readily found in nature. It is completely sculptural, moving and pulsating around the viewer as he or she stands inside. The complexity of design is calmed by the simple and monochromatic decoration, stabilizing the building. It is totally without precedent, and truthfully without imitation, and it is an everlasting testament to Borromini's absolute genius.
The courtyard (lower part of the picture) was built decades earlier by Giacomo della Porta. It now houses the Archivio di Stato, the State Archives of Rome. The church itself rises in the upper portion of the picture.
The lantern has been likened to the Tower of Babel, Dante's mountain in Purgatory from the Divine Comedy, and a papal tiara
The concave sides of the drum thrust out dramatically over the convex arc of the courtyard below
A view of the dome, on the interior. Because it is such a small space, it is impossible to photograph the entire dome without a wide-angle lens.
The lantern, from the inside
The dome springs directly from the entablature, which curves rapidly from convex to concave
I challenge anyone who scoffs at or is bored by architecture to not be converted after a visit to this church. Also, this view should look familiar, as it is the background of this blog!
The construction of such a small church was commonplace in the mid- to late- seventeenth century, as the needs of large congregational spaces were met during the vast building campaigns of the 1500s. A small church such as this was meant for private worship, and its design reflects the changing attitudes towards spirituality at the time, evolving from a penitent and apologetic attitude in the sixteenth century to the hope of a transcendent and ecstatic experience in the seventeenth. In other words, these small churches were not built to be passive monuments, but rather to seek out and involve the viewer with radical and seemingly miraculous forms.
Sant'Ivo is centralized in plan, but its exact shape is impossible to define-- it is certainly not a shape readily found in nature. It is completely sculptural, moving and pulsating around the viewer as he or she stands inside. The complexity of design is calmed by the simple and monochromatic decoration, stabilizing the building. It is totally without precedent, and truthfully without imitation, and it is an everlasting testament to Borromini's absolute genius.
The courtyard (lower part of the picture) was built decades earlier by Giacomo della Porta. It now houses the Archivio di Stato, the State Archives of Rome. The church itself rises in the upper portion of the picture.
The lantern has been likened to the Tower of Babel, Dante's mountain in Purgatory from the Divine Comedy, and a papal tiara
The concave sides of the drum thrust out dramatically over the convex arc of the courtyard below
A view of the dome, on the interior. Because it is such a small space, it is impossible to photograph the entire dome without a wide-angle lens.
The lantern, from the inside
The dome springs directly from the entablature, which curves rapidly from convex to concave
I challenge anyone who scoffs at or is bored by architecture to not be converted after a visit to this church. Also, this view should look familiar, as it is the background of this blog!
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