The language of design in baroque architecture : looking for 'connections' through Francesco Borromini's works

Abstract

This paper attempts to discuss how Francesco Borromini, an architect in the Baroque age, was able to ‘connect’ different disciplines to construct exceptional buildings that managed to communicate with visitors in a very strong manner. He devised a new methodology that, although initially misunderstood, ended up being a proper language of design. To do this, various elements will be analyzed and discussed.Borromini used spaces as concrete materials that he shaped and manipulated in an original way, managing to create the illusion of greater spaces; by using different geometric forms and intersecting them to create other more complicated designs, he had better flow and movement between the internal elements. He also made his imposing façades relate with the other surrounding buildings in the urban space outside, creating a pulsating force even between spaces that were mutually interdependent. Borromini also utilized original and ingenious ornamentation, the installation of which involved great technical difficulty. He ‘connected’ his aesthetic vision for his buildings with his scientific knowledge as may be appreciated in his use of perfect proportions to scale and in his eye for detail manifest in every architectural element, be it a base, an angle, or a bend. He worked around a centre integrating the uniform vertical walls with it and then proceeded to create a relationship with the outside urban spaces. Borromini synthesized existing schemes such as the Greek cross, the circle, the octagon, and the Latin cross to come up with innovative complex spaces that expressed his innermost beliefs and feelings but which were also integral parts of the message and philosophy of the Baroque age.