My favorite sculpture of the Baroque period is definantly Berninis' "St. Teresa in Ecstasy". It screams dramatic, extravagant, rich and complex, but has a silent modesty and innocence. I'm overwhelm by this strong climatic emotion then there's this settle pure-ness underneath. It leaves an immense aftertaste...
The first time I saw this masterpiece was on a Power of Art video, (I love these) and I fell in love immediately, with almost all of Berninis' work. http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/Nl2o3vu96QM/
The sculpture is based off of St. Teresa who was a founder of a strict order of nuns. She claimed to be subject to religious trances, like hallucinations, in which she saw visions of Heaven and Hell and was visited by angels.
Teresa wrote about one of her visions:
"Beside me, on the left hand, appeared an angel in bodily form, such as I am not in the habit of seeing except very rarely. . . . He was not tall but short, and very beautiful; and his face was so aflame that he appeared to be one of the highest rank of angels, who seem to be all on fire. . . . In his hands I saw a great golden spear, and at the iron tip there appeared to be a point of fire. This he plunged into my heart several times so that it penetrated to my entrails. When he pulled it out, I felt that he took them with it, and left me utterly consumed by the great love of God. The pain was so severe that it made me utter several moans. The sweetness caused by this intense pain is so extreme that one cannot possibly wish it to cease. . . . This is not a physical, but a spiritual pain, though the body has some share in it-even a considerable share."
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