The ''Blessed Soul'' ( it, Anima Beata) is a bust by the Italian artist
Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Executed around 1619, it is a pendant piece to the ''
Damned Soul''. Their original location was sacristy of the church of
San Giacomo degli Spagnuoli
Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore ("Our Lady of the Sacred Heart", also known as San Giacomo degli Spagnoli and in Spanish, Santiago de los Españoles) is a Catholic church dedicated to the Virgin Mary located in Rome's Piazza Navona.
History
An ...
, but they were then moved in the late 19th century, and then to the
Spanish Embassy to the Holy See in Piazza di Spagna The set may have been inspired by
prints by
Karel van Mallery
Karel van Mallery (1571–1635?) was a Flemish engraver who mainly worked on religious subjects and portraits and was also a reproductive engraver. He worked in Antwerp and Paris.
Life
Karel van Mallery was born in Antwerp. He was a pupil o ...
, although they were initially categorized as nymph and satyr.
Critical Reception
Despite being relatively unknown, the Blessed Soul was noted by some visitors to Rome. In particular, the painter
Joshua Reynolds stated that the sculpture "has all the sweetness and perfect happiness expressed in her countenance that can be imagined." However, the Blessed Soul has not been considered one of Bernini's finest works in more recent times. Wittkower points to the "doughy hair of the Anima Beata", while Hibbard finds it uninspiring when compared to the Damned Soul, mentioning that 'virtuous appearances' do not translate too well into sculpture.
Recent scholarship on the sculpture has queried whether its topic is not the Christian personifications of blessedness but a depiction of a nymph.
See also
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List of works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Notes
References
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Further reading
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External links
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{{Gian Lorenzo Bernini
1620s sculptures
Busts in Italy
Marble sculptures in Italy
Busts by Gian Lorenzo Bernini