Carlo Rainaldi (1611–1691) – an architect with a love for music

Carlo Rainaldi, interior of the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli

Carlo Rainaldi, interior of the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli

Walking around Rome, we encounter the works of this prolific architect at every step of the way, since he practiced his craft from a very early age. He was, the son and student of the renowned Roman builder, Girolamo Rainaldi and as was often the case with artistic families, initially he worked alongside his father and after his death in 1655 – independently. He received a broad education in humanities and music, which in the case of a youth whose career path was predestined, was truly an exception. We know him as an architect, often forgetting that he was also a musician and a composer.

Carlo Rainaldi, interior of the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli
Carlo Rainaldi, façade of the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli
Carlo Rainaldi, Palazzo Pamphilj, Piazza Navona
Carlo Rainaldi, Pavilion della Meridiana
Carlo Rainaldi, nymphaeum in the Palazzo Borghese
Carlo Rainaldi and other architects - Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone
Carlo Rainaldi, twin churches - Santa Maria dei Miracoli and Santa Maria in Montesanto, Piazza del Popolo
Carlo Rainaldi, façade of the choir of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
Carlo Rainaldi, upper part of the façade of the Church of Sant'Andrea della Valle
Carlo Rainaldi, façade of the Church of Santissimi Nomi di Gesù e Maria
Carlo Rainaldi, façade of the Church of San Girolamo della Carità
Carlo Rainaldi, funerary monument of Pope Clement IX, Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
Carlo Rainaldi, funerary monument of Cardinal Bonelli in the side enterance of the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva
Carlo Rainaldi, main altar in the Church of San Girolamo della Carità
Carlo Rainaldi, interior of the Church of Sant’Antonio dei Portoghesi
Carlo Rainaldi, San Borromeo Chapel, Church of Santa Maria in Vallicella
Carlo Rainaldi, design of the tombstone of Cardinal Adriano Ceva, completed by Giuliano Finelli, Baptistery of San Giovanni, Chapel of SS Venantius and Domnius
Carlo Rainaldi, main altar in the Church of San Lorenzo in Lucina

Walking around Rome, we encounter the works of this prolific architect at every step of the way, since he practiced his craft from a very early age. He was, the son and student of the renowned Roman builder, Girolamo Rainaldi and as was often the case with artistic families, initially he worked alongside his father and after his death in 1655 – independently. He received a broad education in humanities and music, which in the case of a youth whose career path was predestined, was truly an exception. We know him as an architect, often forgetting that he was also a musician and a composer.

 

       

The buildings raised by him were characterized by strong chiaroscuro effects, heavily accentuated multiple columns and monumentalism, of which the façade of the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli can serve as an example He was also a skilled designer of numerous altars, chapels and domes scattered throughout churches all over the city (San Girolamo della Carità, San Lorenzo in Lucina, Santa Maria in Montesanto, Santa Maria della Scala).

Most important structures created by Carlo Rainaldi in Rome:

  •     Palazzo Pamphilj on Piazza Navona (along with his father)
  •     Casino della Meridiana in the Villa Borghese complex (initially along with his father)
  •     Nymphaeum and loggia in the Palazzo Borghese
  •     Participation in the construction of the Church of Sant’Agnese in Agone on Piazza Navona
  •     Church Santa Maria in Campitelli, 1660
  •     Twin churches on Piazza del Popolo (1667), finished by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Carlo Fontana (Santa Maria in Montesanto, Santa Maria dei Miracoli)
  •     Monumental façade of the choir of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, 1675
  •     Completion of the façade of the Church of Sant’Andrea della Valle, 1665
  •     Façade of the Church of Santissimi Nomi di Gesù e Maria at via del Corso (1674) and design of two chapels (attributed to him)
  •     Completion of the Church of Santa Maria del Suffragio at via Giulia – façade and two chapels
  •     Façade of the Church of San Girolamo della Carità
  •     Funerary monument for, among others, Clement IX (1671) in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
  •     Funerary monument of cardinal Bonelli in the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva