art.wikisort.org - Sculpture

The Blessed Soul (Italian: Anima Beata) is a bust by the Italian artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Executed around 1619, it is a pendant piece to the Damned Soul.[1][2] Their original location was sacristy of the church of San Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, but they were then moved in the late 19th century, and then to the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See in Piazza di Spagna[3] The set may have been inspired by prints by Karel van Mallery, although they were initially categorized as nymph and satyr.

Blessed Soul
Latin: Anima Beata
Artist	Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Year	1619 (1619)
Catalogue	7
Type	Sculpture
Medium	Marble
Dimensions	Life-size
Location	Palace of Spain, Rome
Preceded by	Damned Soul (Bernini)
Followed by	Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius

Critical Reception

Despite being relatively unknown, the Blessed Soul was noted by some visitors to Rome. In particular, the painter Joshua Reynolds stated that the sculpture "has all the sweetness and perfect happiness expressed in her countenance that can be imagined."[4] However, the Blessed Soul has not been considered one of Bernini's finest works in more recent times. Wittkower points to the "doughy hair of the Anima Beata",[3] while Hibbard finds it uninspiring when compared to the Damned Soul, mentioning that 'virtuous appearances' do not translate too well into sculpture.[5]

Recent scholarship on the sculpture has queried whether its topic is not the Christian personifications of blessedness but a depiction of a nymph.[6]

See also

• List of works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Notes

References

• Cueto, David García (2015-01-01). "On the original meanings of Gian Lorenzo Bernini's Anima beata and Anima dannata: Nymph and Satyr?". Sculpture Journal. 24 (1): 37–53. doi:10.3828/sj.2015.24.1.4. ISSN 1366-2724.
• Hibbard, Howard (1990). Bernini. London: Penguin. ISBN 9780140135985.
• Reynolds, Joshua (1659). Sir Joshua Reynolds' Notes and Observations on Pictures. Soho: John RSussell Smith.
• Rowland (4 June 2015). "Bernini: He Had the Touch". The New York Review of Books.
• theartstory (2022). "Bernini Artworks & Famous Sculptures". The Art Story.
• Wittkower, Rudolf (1955). Gian Lorenzo Bernini: The Sculptor of the Roman Baroque. London: Phaidon Press. ISBN 9780801414305.

Further reading

• Avery, Charles (1997). Bernini: Genius of the Baroque. London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 9780500286333.
• Baldinucci, Filippo (2006) [1682]. The Life of Bernini. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 9780271730769.
• Bernini, Domenico (2011) [1713]. The Life of Giano Lorenzo Bernini. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 9780271037486.
• Mormando, Franco (2011). Bernini: His Life and His Rome. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226538525.

External links

• Media related to Blessed Soul (Bernini) at Wikimedia Commons

На других языках

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- [en] Blessed Soul (Bernini)

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[es] Alma bendita

Alma bendita es un busto en mármol realizado por Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Esculpido entorno al 1619, se pone en contraposición a otra obra, la del Alma maldita. Es cierto que ambas esculturas fueron encargadas por el cardenal Montoya, del cual el propio Bernini realizó un busto. Su ubicación originaria fue la sacristía de la iglesia de San Giacomo de los Spagnuoli, también conocida como iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Sagrado Corazón; luego, hacia finales del siglo XIX fueron transferidas a la embajada española en el Palacio de España.[1]

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[it] Anima beata

Anima beata è un busto in marmo realizzato da Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Scolpito attorno al 1619, è in contrapposizione ad un'altra opera, quella dell'Anima dannata. È accertato che entrambe le sculture siano state commissionate dal cardinale Montoya, del quale lo stesso Bernini realizzò un busto. La loro collocazione originaria era la sacrestia della chiesa di San Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, anche nota come chiesa di Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore; sul finire del XIX secolo furono poi trasferite all'ambasciata spagnola presso il Palazzo Di Spagna.[1]

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