Persuasive Art of the Catholic Church

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        The repercussions of the Catholic Counter- Reformation on art during the Baroque period, in the sixteenth century, were undeniably persuasive and influential. After the Reformation, the Catholic Church felt it was essential to reinforce faith and power amongst the people. Art was utilized as a form of propaganda to convey the ideas and morals of the Catholic Church by playing on the emotions of the viewer through art techniques, symbolism and iconography.

The Reformation left the Catholic Church feeling uncertain about its stature in society. There was a strong need for change; between 1545 and 1563, the Council of Trent created guidelines that would aid in the prevention of abuses and corruption within the church, and restore its respect.^[1] The culture “was developed to bring under control not only religious disquiet, but all the insecurities produced as a consequence for long periods of change that Western European societies had been undergoing.”^[2] The notion that “the Baroque spirit is identified with the triumph of Catholicism” shows the desire of the Church to be dominant once again, and regain its followers.^[3] To reach this idea, propaganda was an important tool used by the authorities at this time. “Those who guide possess a consciousness of the necessity to persuade; to this corresponds an attitude on the part of the public in which they allowed themselves to be persuaded.”^[4] This period was to become the reign of the Popes, who thought of themselves as “heirs of the Roman Emperors, and they wished to revive in the Eternal City, the grandiose style of Ancient Rome.”^[5]They longed for “The feeling of a return to the great period of early Christianity, when the Church was triumphing over paganism.”^[6] The strengthening of the Papal authority and the return to the classical subject matter were both key goals of the Counter Reformation, and are reflected in the Baroque art of this time.

The works of art produced during the Baroque have a rhetorical quality that is incorporated to sway a viewer towards an argument or belief. “Everything that belonged to the Baroque emerges from the necessities of manipulating opinions and feelings on a broad public scale.”^[7] Rhetoric is a persuasive ancient art that was use in public speaking; “The visual rhetoric of Baroque art has a similar persuasive quality and function”^[8].The common rhetorical techniques used are concettismo, which means concept; meraviglia, which is about pleasure and surprise; and spectacle, which talks about modes of imitation and style.^[9] “The visual intentions of the Baroque have another quality; they can nudge us out of our usual experiences, out of our normal ways of thinking.”^[10] The pieces created during the baroque were meant to evoke feelings and played on the emotions of the viewer; “Baroque culture thus sets itself the task of moving its addressee.”^[11] The art was more than just beautiful, it had purpose, to inspire its viewer. The art was “a technique, a method, a type of communication or relation; and more precisely, it’s a technique of persuasion.”^[12]  The Church and Council of Trent had control over the works being produced, thus the images were conformed to their wants.