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===Success in Rome: ''The Burial of St. Petronilla (1623)''===

===Success in Rome: ''The Burial of St. Petronilla (1623)''===

Guercino formed the ideas leading to his Prima Maniera from his hometown of Cento, in the independent Emilia region of Italy where the Carracci’s Bolognese school dominated the somewhat isolated region. Works from the school greatly influenced Guercino’s naturalistic style, which featured strong lighting and shading choices. Guercino’s bold take on this chiaroscuro style impressed powerful religious patrons, eventually leading him to Rome in 1621 after much success in the north.  However, “His early naturalistic chiaroscuro style, so successfully practiced in Emilia, was not highly regarded in the sophisticated Roman court milieu in which he then found himself” <ref>Turner</ref>. Two years later, ''The Burial of Saint Petronilla (1623)'' showed the court a radical reorientation of his Prima Maniera style that was as bold as his previous efforts, but exuded a new level of refinement.

Guercino formed the ideas leading to his Prima Maniera from his hometown of Cento, in the independent Emilia region of Italy where the Carracci’s Bolognese school dominated the somewhat isolated region. Works from the school greatly influenced Guercino’s naturalistic style, which featured strong lighting and shading choices. Guercino’s bold take on this chiaroscuro style impressed powerful religious patrons, eventually leading him to Rome in 1621 after much success in the north.  However, “His early naturalistic chiaroscuro style, so successfully practiced in Emilia, was not highly regarded in the sophisticated Roman court milieu in which he then found himself” <ref>Turner</ref>. Two years later, ''The Burial of Saint Petronilla (1623)'' showed the court a radical reorientation of his Prima Maniera style that was as bold as his previous efforts, but exuded a new level of refinement.

===Death of Pope Gregory XV: ''Esther before Ahasuerus (1639)''===

===Death of Pope Gregory XV: ''Esther before Ahasuerus (1639)''===

The Death of Pope Gregory XV in 1623 ended Guercino’s brief career in Rome, with the loss of his strong network of Vatican patronage. Guercino returned to Cento with new stylistic viewpoints, learned in part from the works of fellow Roman contemporaries who were seen less critically in the eyes of the court. A particular contemporary named Guido Reni “heralded a fundamental change in his (Guercino’s) work. Henceforth there was a lightening of his palette and a tendency to make the spatial setting of his figures more lucid” <ref>Turner</ref>. Like Guercino, Reni hailed from the northern Emilia region of Italy, studying and refining his art in Bologna. However, Reni’s sensuous compositions always remained extremely popular with the patrons of Rome as well as Bologna. Guercino’s style grew closer to the conventions used by Reni throughout this period, though Esther before Ahasuerus (1639) still betrays the roots of his Prima Maniera, despite moving closer to the stylistic choices seen in The Personification of Astrology (1655).  

The Esther story remains an emotionally charged narrative despite “represent[ing] a later phase of the painter’s career, when classical theories exerted a certain formal and emotional restraint in his work” (Plummer). Esther is seen swooning before the Persian King Ahasuerus, after defying death to plead with him to stop the massacre of her Jewish people. Esther’s self-sacrifice was later modified to reflect church teachings, and became a popular subject matter among religious depictions. The Catholic Church came to portray Esther as the Immaculate Virgin in her role of intercessor on the Day of Judgment in church iconography <ref>Hall 116</ref>. The King in his symbolic God role grants Esther’s request with the wave of his golden scepter, which causes her to faint into the arms of the surprised chambermaids. Through subtle symbolism, ''The Personification of Astrology (1655)'' also hints at the notion of the Immaculate Virgin. Biblical symbolism tells that The Virgin of the Immaculate Conception is crowned with a circle of stars <ref>Hall 289</ref>. The female astrologer figure also displays a row of stars across her hair cover. Going with the notion of the astrologer as the Immaculate Virgin finalizes Guercino’s ''Secondo Maniera'', as even the narrative takes an element of subtlety.  

The Death of Pope Gregory XV in 1623 ended Guercino’s brief career in Rome, with the loss of his strong network of Vatican patronage. Guercino returned to Cento with new stylistic viewpoints, learned in part from the works of fellow Roman contemporaries who were seen less critically in the eyes of the court. A particular contemporary named Guido Reni “heralded a fundamental change in his (Guercino’s) work. Henceforth there was a lightening of his palette and a tendency to make the spatial setting of his figures more lucid” <ref>Turner</ref>. Like Guercino, Reni hailed from the northern Emilia region of Italy, studying and refining his art in Bologna. However, Reni’s sensuous compositions always remained extremely popular with the patrons of Rome as well as Bologna. Guercino’s style grew closer to the conventions used by Reni throughout this period, though ''Esther before Ahasuerus (1639)'' still betrays the roots of his ''Prima Maniera'', despite moving closer to the stylistic choices seen in ''The Personification of Astrology (1655).''

The Esther story remains an emotionally charged narrative despite “represent[ing] a later phase of the painter’s career, when classical theories exerted a certain formal and emotional restraint in his work” <ref>Plummer</ref>. Esther is seen swooning before the Persian King Ahasuerus, after defying death to plead with him to stop the massacre of her Jewish people. Esther’s self-sacrifice was later modified to reflect church teachings, and became a popular subject matter among religious depictions. The Catholic Church came to portray Esther as the Immaculate Virgin in her role of intercessor on the Day of Judgment in church iconography <ref>Hall 116</ref>. The King in his symbolic God role grants Esther’s request with the wave of his golden scepter, which causes her to faint into the arms of the surprised chambermaids. Through subtle symbolism, ''The Personification of Astrology (1655)'' also hints at the notion of the Immaculate Virgin. Biblical symbolism tells that The Virgin of the Immaculate Conception is crowned with a circle of stars <ref>Hall 289</ref>. The female astrologer figure also displays a row of stars across her hair cover. Going with the notion of the astrologer as the Immaculate Virgin finalizes Guercino’s ''Secondo Maniera'', as even the narrative takes an element of subtlety.  

 

===Later Years in Bologna: ''The Personification of Astrology (1655)''===

===Later Years in Bologna: ''The Personification of Astrology (1655)''===

==References==

==References==

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==Works Cited==

==Works Cited==

*Guercino. The Burial of St. Petronilla. 1623. Musei Capitolini, Rome, Italy.

*Guercino. The Burial of St. Petronilla. 1623. Musei Capitolini, Rome, Italy.

*Guercino. Esther Before Ahasuerus. 1639. Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

*Guercino. Esther Before Ahasuerus. 1639. Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

*Guercino. The Personification of Astrology. 1655. Blanton Museum of Art, Austin, Texas.

*Guercino. The Personification of Astrology. 1655. Blanton Museum of Art, Austin, Texas.

 

*Hall, James A. Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art. New York: Richard D. Irwin, 1985. Print.

*Hall, James A. Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art. New York: Richard D. Irwin, 1985. Print.

*Mahon, Denis. Guercino master painter of the Baroque. Washington: National Gallery of Art, 1992. Print. 205-211.

*Mahon, Denis. Guercino master painter of the Baroque. Washington: National Gallery of Art, 1992. Print. 205-211.

*Plummer, Ellen A. In focus, Guercino's Esther. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Museum of Art, 1993. Print.

*Plummer, Ellen A. In focus, Guercino's Esther. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Museum of Art, 1993. Print.

*Turner, Nicolas. "Guercino." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 27 Sep. 2009 [http://www.oxfordartonline.com.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/subscriber/article/grove/art/T035416/].

*Turner, Nicolas. "Guercino." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 27 Sep. 2009 [http://www.oxfordartonline.com.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/subscriber/article/grove/art/T035416/].