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Analysis Of The Ecstasy Of Saint Teresa

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The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa can be found in an elevated aedicule in the Cornaro Chapel, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome. It is the central sculptural group in white marble. It was designed and completed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Bernini was born in 1598 in Naples and lived to the age of 81. He was the son of the sculptor Pietro Bernini. As a child, Bernini was taught his first art lesson by his father and had natural talent. Bernini attracted attention due to his well-developed artistic talent as such a young age. Bernini was an Italian Sculptor and architect. In addition, Bernini was also a painter and involved within the theater. Bernini produced over 150 painting depicting biblical and secular stories and the world of mythology, …show more content…

The pain was so severe that is made me utter several moans. The sweetness caused by this intense pain is so extreme that one cannot possibly wish it to cease, nor is one’s soul content with anything but God. This is not a physical but a spiritual pain, though the body has some share in it – even a considerable share.” The description Saint Teresa uses to describe this vision is so intense and spiritual in order to involve the viewer and help the viewer to understand her extraordinary experience. Bernini brings all the passion and awe of Teresa’s story by depicting her as the now-immortalized image of a swoon. He sculpts Saint Teresa with her head thrown back, eyelids half-closed, and her mouth open slightly as she moans in spiritual ecstasy. Teresa is sculpted in heavy garments designed in a way to reveal her internal state. It truly is a beautiful piece of baroque art. Although Bernini’s sculpture is an amazing representation of Saint Teresa’s vision, it is also important to consider the space that surrounds it. The grouping in the centerpiece of the Cornaro Chapel has many details. The Cornaro Chapel was named after the Cornaro family who commissions the chapel and hired Bernini to design it. As viewer’s walk toward the chapel, theater boxes are found on either side of the walls. In these boxes, there are many seated figures within them who appear to be conversating. It is almost as if the

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