Correggio Assumption

Correggio’s Mannerist Assumption of the Virgin and Fra Andrea Pozzo’s Italian Baroque The Glorification of St. Ignatius, both illustrate exemplary visions of illusionistic images and mean to celebrate Christianity with both Correggio’s visualization of Catholicism’s key doctrines and Pozzo’s illustration glorifying the Jesuit order. Both church domes frescoes include heavenly, illusory images of looking into the heavens, making viewers feel as if they were being pulled up into the heavens and inspired awe, while bolstering the faith of the churchgoers.

Corregio, Antonio Allegri, was born in Correggio a small farming community in the Po valley. He may have received some basic training in the art from his uncle, the painter Lorenzo Allegri, or from the artist Francesco de Bianchi Ferrari, however his first real inspiration came from Andrea Mantegna, who may have also trained him (Ekserdjian). His work is also inspired by

Lorenzo Costa, Leonardo Da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo.
In 1522 he received a commission from wealthy citizens of Parma to paint the dome, apse as well as the choir vault of Parma Cathedral thanks to his successful work done in the two Benedictine churches of San Benedetto Po and S Paolo. Crowning Parma’s most important sacred space, The Assumption of The Virgin not only illustrates her joyful reunion with her son, it also visualizes key Catholic doctrines, celebrates the city’s return to Papal States and symbolizes the final union of the faithful with the divine (Khan). Though it is an octagonal dome, Correggio makes it feel as if it is wholly circular and seamless. Its illusionistic imagery with his use of one point perspective, foreshortened figures and Mannerism’s ambiguous space all help to make the viewer feel as if they were part of the scene and instilled stronger feelings of devotion and as such is considered part of the Catholic counter-reformation against Protestantism.
While the contract didn’t specify the fresco’s subject, there is no doubt that the Assumption was always intended for the dome as the cathedral was actually dedicated to the Virgin’s assumption (Eskerdijan, 242).

Correggio used red chalk cartoons/designos to plan his work and there have also been suggestions that he may have used wax or clay models along with a small-scale model of the dome in order to study the di sotto in su “from below to above” perspective (Ekserdjian). The base of the dome, the squinches are decorated with the four saints of Parma: St. John the Baptist, St. Hilary, St. Bernard & St. Thomas; just above that the apostles gaze in wonder & bewilderment, while throngs of angels swirl around the Virgin Mary to accompany her to reunite with son Christ. Eve is there alongside the Virgin with apple in outstretched hand, as well as Adam who stands over with the men, holding his hand over his chest; both actions seem to suggest their acknowledgement for their parts in the original sin for which the Virgin’s son sacrificed

himself.
However, what should have been Correggio’s lifetime achievement may not have been very well received. The anecdote about one of the canons of the cathedral denouncing it as “a stew of frogs’ legs” is apparently supported by a letter by Bernardino Gatti, written when he was at work on the cupola of the Steccata, in which he refers ominously, to what happened to Correggio at the cathedral (Ekserdijan, 254). Correggio never garnered as much popularity as he did posthumously, especially amongst Italian Baroque artists who found a kindred spirit in him (Ekserdjian).

One such member of the Italian Baroque movement was Fra Andrea Pozzo. Pozzo was an Italian painter, architect, stage designer and an accomplished mathematician and wrote a treatise on perspective, releasing Perspectiva Pictorum et Architecturm in 1702 (Bussagli, 74). In 1665 he joined the Society of Jesus and remained a lay brother for the rest of his life, producing his most significant work for the order. His early works show the influence of the Lombard school which is characterized by a sculptural sense of form and dramatic gesture and is seen throughout his use of intense color and dramatic chiaroscuro (Bösel). In 1681 he was summoned to Rome by the General of the Order, Padre Giovanni Paolo Oliva, where he was initially used as a stage designer until leaders of the order saw the illusory images he was creating and commissioned him for larger frescos such as The Glorification of St. Ignatius.
In 1684 he began working on the completion of the Church of St. Ignazio, where his first task was to find an aesthetically pleasing fix to the dome of the crossing that had been unfinished by Orazio Grassi; he did so by painting a false perspective of a dome with a lantern on a tambour of canvas meant to be set inside the already painted dome (Bösel). He then started working on The Glorification of St. Ignatius fresco on the nave vault honoring the church’s namesake, the founder of the Jesuit Order of which dealt with Catholic education and missionary work around the world. Using quadratura, perspective di sotto in sù, and a central focal point he created illusionistic imagery of the architecture of the building extending and opening up into the heavens giving the viewer the effect of feeling as if they were being pulled into the heavens, much like Correggio’s Assumption. Drawing from the most recent achievements of Roman fresco painting, virtuoso grouping of figures in deep space and flickering patterns of light and shade, and combining it with early Baroque’s quadrature technique, Pozzo created a fresco that surpasses all earlier works with its dynamic effect and power of persuasion (Bösel).
The image focuses on St Ignatius and his work with the Jesuit order; in the center of this heavenly space between Heaven & Earth, Christ receives St. Ignatius in the presence of personifications of the four corners of the world. A woman riding a camel depicts Asia, a black-skinned woman riding a crocodile depicts Africa, a bare-breasted woman wielding an arrow, wearing a feather headdress and riding a mountain lion is America and a blonde woman wearing a crown, holding a scepter & riding a horse represents Europe. The main message behind this is that the Jesuit order has sent missionaries throughout all the four corners of the world to educate the people about Christianity as well as to help those in need. The Glorification of St. Ignatius is also considered part of the Catholic Counter-Reformation as all of the elements within the image helped to ensure & bolster the faithful’s devotion to the Catholic Church.
Both Correggio and Pozzo masterfully demonstrate awe-inspiring illusionistic images within church domes that celebrate Christianity & Catholicism. Each is highly successful in opening up the domes to a heavenly space, breaking down the sense of reality and spiritually engaging the viewer into feeling as if they are part of the scene resulting in a reaffirmation of devotion to the church. In Correggio’s Assumption of the Virgin the narrative behind is that of the Virgin after her death being escorted up into heaven and being reunited with her son; in Pozzo’s The Glorification of St. Ignatius not only is St. Ignatius going up into heaven but the four corners of the world is rising up into heaven due to the missionary work of the Jesuit order.