Baroque

Since the beginning of the sixteenth century, the policy pursued during the Spanish domination was aimed at centralizing all the political administrative functions in the city of Naples. It thus assumed a central role in the Mediterranean and constituted an important resource for the crown of Spain, above all for the revenues deriving from the very heavy tax burden. This led to the development of a weak and poorly productive economic structure, which generated heavy social disputes that resulted in various manifestations of revolt by the civilian population, as in the case of the famous Masaniello Revolt (1647). Nevertheless the art had a notable impulse: the fervent climate of renewal that manifested itself in the architecture is well represented by the activity of masters of the caliber of Cosimo Fanzago, while for what concerns the painting it is enough to say that Naples had a very important role plan among the top centers of Italian artistic production. Remember in this sense the presence of Caravaggio in the city, who with his works painted here (Pio Monte della Misericordia and Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte) strongly influenced the local artists of the first half of the seventeenth century, and think of the sublime work of the great exponents of the Neapolitan school such as Jusepe de Ribera (Gallery of the Girolamini and Chapel of the Treasure of San Gennaro), Massimo Stanzione (church of San Lorenzo Maggiore), Luca Giordano (church of the Pietà dei Turchini), Francesco Solimena and Cosimo Fanzago (church of Jesus New).