12 main CHARACTERISTICS of BAROQUE sculpture

The Baroque It is a cultural and artistic period that was lived between the 17th century and early 18th century, adapting its aesthetic language to the concerns and idiosyncrasies of each country, developing in Europe and the American colonies. An artistic style that emerged in a historical moment full of great religious and political tensions between Catholic and Protestant countries and becoming a propaganda art and image of the power of each other.

Its impact on all fields of culture, from painting, architecture, music, literature and, of course, sculpture. In this lesson from unPROFESOR.com we offer you the main characteristics of Baroque sculpture so you can distinguish its variants and its most distinctive elements.

Now that we know the most important characteristics of Baroque sculpture, we are going to know how this artistic trend was in the European field. And it is that Baroque sculpture is usually divided into three stages:

Early Baroque, 1600 - 1675

In this first moment is the time of

Bernini, the main sculptor of the Baroque. Baroque sculpture originates from Italy by the hand of this sculptor and architect. Throughout this century, the national sculptural schools will coexist, such as the Spanish, more naturalistic, or the French, more classicist. Among Bernini's best-known works are The Abduction of Prosepina, David, Apollo and Dafne, The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, Tombs of the Popes Urban VIII and Alexander VI, among others.

Late Baroque. 1675-1725

France is presented as the main focus of Baroque sculpture, becoming one of the great European cultural centers. One of the representative works of this period is the Palace of Versailles and all its decoration, the sculptures in the palace gardens being especially interesting.

Rococo. 1725-1800

This is the end of this era, being a last phase more extravagant by recharging the works and being filled with more drama. The Rococo also has France as its center. Rococo art developed in the early 18th century, in the transition period between Baroque and Neoclassical art. Among the most prominent Rococo sculptors we find Antonio Corradini (1688-1752), with works such as The Veiled Woman (The Faith) and Modesty, and Étienne-Maurice Falconet (1716-1791), his most outstanding works being the Menacing cupid (1757) and Pygmalion and Galatea (1763).