Francesco Borromini
Francesco Borromini (1599–1667) was an Italian architect whose inventive, geometrically complex churches and buildings helped define Baroque Rome.
San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane: A Roman church designed by Borromini, known for its undulating façade and intricate oval geometry. Its compressed site became a testing ground for his interlocking curves and spatial invention.
Baroque architecture: A seventeenth- and eighteenth-century architectural style marked by dramatic movement, rich effects, and complex spatial composition. Borromini's buildings are among the most distinctive expressions of its Roman form.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini: An Italian sculptor, architect, and painter who became a leading figure of Baroque Rome. His public stature and collaborative style provide a sharp comparison with Borromini's independent, exacting practice.
Ticino: A region in southern Switzerland where Italian is the principal language. Borromini was born in Bissone, in Ticino, before building his career in Rome.
Guarino Guarini: An Italian priest, mathematician, and architect known for complex Baroque buildings and geometric forms. Guarini's architecture shares Borromini's interest in intricate geometry and spatial complexity.
Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza: A church in Rome designed by Borromini, distinguished by a star-shaped plan and spiraling lantern. Its plan and rising lantern display his use of geometry as architectural structure.
Central-plan church: A church organized around a central space, often arranged symmetrically around a geometric core. Several of Borromini's churches adapt centralized plans into dynamic, nonstandard geometries.
Carlo Maderno: An Italian architect who helped shape early Baroque architecture in Rome. Borromini worked under Maderno at St. Peter's and learned in his architectural workshop.
Bissone: A town on Lake Lugano in Switzerland and the birthplace of Francesco Borromini. His origins in this lakeside town connect him to the region's skilled builders.
Balthasar Neumann: A German architect of the eighteenth century known for dynamic Baroque churches and palaces. His spatially fluid churches show the later reach of Roman Baroque experimentation.