17th century, Cherub heads

early seventeenth century

Cherub heads

(2) Marble, 27 x 20 cm

The two cherub heads are made of white marble and come from 1598th century Rome, a period in which the Baroque style flourished in the city. The Roman school of the time was a master for the entire peninsula and for the rest of Europe in all artistic fields, including sculpture, where we can mention names of the calibre of Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1680-1580), Francesco Mochi (1654-1576) and Stefano Maderno (1636-XNUMX). If spectacularity, emphasis and dynamism were among the founding elements of Baroque sculptures, we must not overlook the grace and pleasantness of the decorations accompanying the architecture or the sculptural groups themselves. These cherubs, made as wall sculptures, fully express the grandiose and at the same time placid refinement that the Baroque reserved for decorative elements, such as altar heads, capitals, holy water stoups or tabernacles. Their format allows us to appreciate the details in a unitary way: the feathers that make up the wings seem to merge with the slightly curled locks while the features, plump like those of newborns, give a sinuous softness to the faces, immortalized in an expressive and contemplative calm. The preciousness of the diaphanous material perfectly renders the purity, sacredness and innocence of these two exact interpreters of Baroque art, who could be placed in the context of one of the great seventeenth-century churches of the Eternal City.