Blessed Soul (Bernini)

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Blessed Soul
Latin: Anima Beata

Artist	Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Year	1619 (1619)
Catalogue	7
Type	Sculpture
Material	Marble
Dimensions	Life-size
Location	Rome

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. It is reckoned that they were both commissioned by Cardinal Montoya, of whom Bernini also did a portrait bust. 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.^[1]

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." ^[2] 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 to sculpture.^[4]

References

Notes

↑ Wittkower 1955, p. 233.
↑ Reynolds 1659, p. 7.
↑ Wittkower 1955, p. 233.
↑ Hibbard 1990, p. 33.

Bibliography

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.
Hibbard, Howard (1990). Bernini. London: Penguin. ISBN 9780140135985.
Mormando, Franco (2011). Bernini: His Life and His Rome. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226538525.
Reynolds, Joshua (1659). Sir Joshua Reynolds' Notes and Observations on Pictures. Soho: John RSussell Smith.
Wittkower, Rudolf (1955). Gian Lorenzo Bernini: The Sculptor of the Roman Baroque. London: Phaidon Press. ISBN 9780801414305.

Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Sculpture

1610s	The Goat Amalthea with the Infant Jupiter and a Faun Bust of Giovanni Battista Santoni A Faun Teased by Children Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence Saint Sebastian Bust of Pope Paul V Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius Bust of Giovanni Vigevano Damned Soul Blessed Soul

1620s	Bust of Carlo Antonio del Pozzo Neptune and Triton The Rape of Proserpina Apollo and Daphne Bust of Pope Gregory XV St. Peter's Baldachin Charity with Four Children David Bust of Alessandro Peretti di Montalto Saint Bibiana Bust of Pope Urban VIII Bust of Monsignor Pedro de Foix Montoya Bust of Cardinal Roberto Bellarmine Bust of Cardinal Giovanni Dolfin Bust of Cardinal Escoubleau de Sourdis Bust of Antonio Cepparelli Bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl Two Angels in Sant'Agostino Bust of Francesco Barberini Bust of Antonio Barberini Bust of Camilla Barbadoni Busts of Cardinals Agostino and Pietro Valier Memorial to Carlo Barberini Tomb of Pope Urban VIII Saint Longinus Charity with Two Children

1630s	Head of Carlo Barberini Two Busts of Cardinal Scipione Borghese Tomb of Countess Matilda of Tuscany Pasce Oves Meas Bust of Costanza Bonarelli Busts of Paolo Giordano and Isabella Orsini Statue of Pope Urban VIII Bust of King Charles I Bust of Thomas Baker Medusa

1640s	Bust of Cardinal Richilieu Memorial to Alessandro Valtrini Memorial to Ippolito Merenda Memorial to Maria Raggi Truth Unveiled by Time Bust of Pope Leo X Ecstasy of Saint Teresa Raimondi Chapel Busts of Innocent X Noli Me Tangere

1650s	Bust of Francesco I d'Este The Vision of Constantine Chair of Saint Peter Saints Jerome and Mary Magdalen

1660s	Statue of Alexander VII Busts of Alexander VII Elephant and Obelisk Angel with the Crown of Thorns Angel with the Superscription Bust of Gabriele Fonseca Bust of Louis XIV Equestrian Statue of King Louis XIV

1670s	Blessed Ludovica Albertoni Tomb of Pope Alexander VII Statue of Pope Clement X

Architecture and
fountains

Paintings

Self-Portrait as a Young Man
Portrait of Pope Urban VIII
Saint Andrew and Saint Thomas
Self-Portrait as a Mature Man
Portrait of a Boy
Christ Mocked

List of works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini

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