I've got a complete overview of Bernini, his "Ecstasy" and his work on and in St. Peters, but, I'm visiting Rome for the first time and took a bunch of
video footage and photos of stuff that are kind of hard to find on the web so that I can redo my videos later.
(You can take my class on Udemy here.)
I have some observations about seeing it in person.
The chapel is super dark and I was far away, but, looking through my cell phone, it compensated for the low light conditions and acted as a kind of telescope.
I was able to see details and magnify stuff looking at it through my cell phone. I guess this kind of bothers me because most of the time I'm annoyed by tourists who only seem to look at the work through their phones.
I also didn't know that Bernini made a similar light bursting through the clouds over the main altar like he did in Saint Peters.
The Cornaro Chapel decorations were made by Bernini after he worked on Saint Peter's.
While the Baldacchino and window over Saint Peter's chair are a bit more monumental and symbolic. The Cornaro Chapel is fully theatrical.
A detail many people miss
The gold rays in the Cornaro Chapel are not symmetrical.
Bernini deliberately angled them so they align with the concealed window above, making the light appear supernatural rather than architectural.
It’s essentially Baroque stage lighting in stone and metal.
Much of the decoration in the Cornaro Chapel came after Bernini and it almost seems like much of it copies or emulates Bernini's style. One example is the "Dream of Joseph."
It almost looks like a "knock off" or copy of Bernini's "Ecstasy."
The "Dream of Joseph" group of sculptures and the reliefs in the Cornaro Chapel at Santa Maria della Vittoria is usually attributed to Antonio Raggi, a close assistant of Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Raggi learned Bernini’s style by working in his studio. In this relief you can see Bernini’s influence in the swirling clouds, dramatic movement, and emotional scene of the angel appearing to Joseph in a dream. These theatrical effects were typical of Bernini’s approach to religious art.
However, the carving is not as lifelike, maybe less powerful, than Bernini’s own sculpture. Bernini’s figures usually show stronger anatomy and deeper carving. Raggi’s still follows Bernini’s style but feels more decorative and kind of weaker. Maybe because the poses of the figures mimic Bernini’s.
(You can take my class on Udemy here.)
