#ecstasy of saint teresa

[pmamtraveller]

ECSTASY OF SAINT TERESA | 1645-52 | by GIAN LORENZO BERNINI

The sculpture portrays SAINT TERESA in a state of divine ecstasy as she receives a vision from an angel, described in her autobiography as a seraph piercing her heart with a flaming arrow. BERNINI captures this moment with exquisite detail and dynamism.

The composition has a sense of movement and drama. SAINT TERESA reclines on a cloud, her body twisted and contorted in ecstasy. The angel hovers above her, poised to strike with the arrow of divine love. The theatricality of the scene draws the viewer into the moment of mystical rapture.

BERNINI excels in conveying intense emotion through his sculptural forms. SAINT TERESA'S face is a mix of ecstasy and agony, her eyes closed in blissful surrender. The angel's expression is one of divine intensity, as if channeling the power of heaven itself.

The sculpture is rich in intricate details, from the delicate folds of SAINT TERESA'S robes to the feathers of the angel's wings. BERNINI'S mastery of anatomy is evident in the naturalistic rendering of the human form, imbuing the figures with a sense of lifelike vitality.

The sculpture is laden with symbolic meaning, reflecting the spiritual themes of SAINT TERESA'S writings. The arrow piercing her heart symbolizes the divine love that consumes her soul, while the cloud represents the ethereal realm of heavenly visions.

The sculpture generated some controversy due to BERNINI'S artistic choices, such as portraying SAINT TERESA as younger and in a suggestive pose. However, it remains a significant work in art history, showcasing BERNINI'S mastery in fusing sculpture, architecture, and theatrical scenography into a single, captivating piece of art. 

[dashasaurus]

St. Theresa of Ávila pray for us 🩵

[nobabobaa]

Ecstasy of Saint Teresa <3

This started as a simple figure study and then I ended up getting carried away lol

[eirlyslys]

[my-sacred-art]

[okanb]

[nsfwbible]

‘the sweetness of this excessive pain’

Rebecca Morgan's 2019 oil on panel painting is a self-portrait after Bernini's Ecstasy of Saint Teresa – that masterpiece of Baroque sculpture portraying the saint's encounter with an angel and his long spear of gold:

“He appeared to me to be thrusting it at times into my heart and to pierce my very entrails; when he drew it out, he seemed to draw them out also, and to leave me all on fire with a great love of God," Teresa of Avila wrote. "The pain was so great, that it made me moan; and yet so surpassing was the sweetness of this excessive pain, that I could not wish to be rid of it.”

Morgan is represented by the Asya Geisberg Gallery.

[vampystake]

"I saw in his hand a long spear of gold, and at the iron's point there seemed to be a little fire. He appeared to me to be thrusting it at times into my heart, and to pierce my very entrails; when he drew it out, he seemed to draw them out also, and to leave me all on fire with a great love of God. The pain was so great, that it made me moan; and yet so surpassing was the sweetness of this excessive pain, that I could not wish to be rid of it. The soul is satisfied now with nothing less than God. The pain is not bodily, but spiritual; though the body has its share in it. It is a caressing of love so sweet which now takes place between the soul and God, that I pray God of His goodness to make him experience it who may think that I am lying." - St. Teresa

[sweeetbonyu]

artdetails:

Detail of Ecstasy of Saint Teresa by Gian Lorenzo Bernini

[deep-space-lines]

in case anyone was wondering where I disappeared to for the past few days, i've been going insane again. fun fact staring at stained glass windows for hours on end will not turn you catholic (source: i stared at so many stained glass windows to make this bc i really wanted to go for a realistic church window sort of vibe)

tumblr is a coward and won't let me upload the full size images so you can look at them and zoom in to your heart's content (please look at them. please) [1] [2]

Prints of this are available on my Society6 (both versions cuz I'm indecisive) (it may take a little while for them to actually appear on the site)

Details:

Timelapse under the cut!

my favorite part of this is when I'm trying to get the pose down and I keep flipping the canvas and it looks like they're doing a silly little dance :)

[chanrizard]

© That_chive

[goddidntdothis]

ANNUNTIATIO

[artthatgivesmefeelings]

Jacopo Amigoni (Italian, 1682-1752) The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, Detail, n.d.

[fourdiagnosesinatrenchcoat]

I wrote a paper on the sexual nature of this sculpture and my intro to Christianity professor did not appreciate it

youre a fake Catholic if you cant acknowledge the horniness. Like you can say its "different" horniness because its divinely inspired ecstasy and is the more noble and higher form of its mortal earthly counterpart sure whatever but its horniness. St Theresa of Avilla described having a moment of religious ecstasy and during it encountering with an angel

I saw in his hand a long spear of gold, and at the iron's point there seemed to be a little fire. He appeared to me to be thrusting it at times into my heart, and to pierce my very entrails; when he drew it out, he seemed to draw them out also, and to leave me all on fire with a great love of God. The pain was so great, that it made me moan; and yet so surpassing was the sweetness of this excessive pain, that I could not wish to be rid of it. The soul is satisfied now with nothing less than God. The pain is not bodily, but spiritual; though the body has its share in it. It is a caressing of love so sweet which now takes place between the soul and God, that I pray God of His goodness to make him experience it who may think that I am lying

There's literally a "long spear" with "a little fire" that is being thrust into her. Bernini made a famous sculpture about this and its in a church

youre not "reading into" something unintended when you recognize whats obviously happening

[emrynbird]

probably gonna hit 20k words this weekend with "angel" romance which has me realizing I should start calling this thing a novel....not a novella...because she will likely be closer to 45-50K instead of my estimate of ~35K