Introduction to Val di Noto

The freedom of worship and the Catholic Church’s role in the diffusion of Baroque

Baroque was born and developed in a historical period worn out by the conflicts between the Catholic Counter-Reformation and Protestantism that led to the Thirty Years’ War, a scene of blood and death in Europe.
With the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, freedom of worship was approved for the three main faiths (Protestant, Calvinist and Catholic), despite the fact that the major European powers involved in the conflict sought the undisputed dominance of one religion.
The Catholic Church had a decisive role in spreading Baroque, which was used as a propaganda tool against the rampant forms of Protestantism and heresy.
The strong scenographic impact and monumental dimension involved in all art forms from this period, interpreted the idea of centrality and greatness of spiritual power used to convince worshippers.

Virtuosity, decorations and altars

The senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena

The Church of St. Julian on Via dei Crociferi

The Duomo di San Giorgio (Cathedral of St. George)

The senses tell about Palazzo Trigona

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Church of Madonna della Stella

Reconstruction after the earthquake

Geometry and wonder in civic architecture in the Baroque of the Val di Noto

Scenography and devotion for St. Agatha

The city of Modica, a balance between nature and urbanism

The triumph of Baroque: expansion of spaces

Luminous sacred spaces

From the end of the world to rebirth from the rubble

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Carlo and the former Jesuit college

The works in the church

The church and the college

Baroque creativity: recurring themes

Art in the cathedral

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The eagle-shaped city

A story of rebirth

The interiors: diffused light and Byzantine relics

St. Agatha and the candelore

The Monastery of the Benedictine nuns

The expansion of space and changing reality

The Monte delle Prestanze in the new city layout

The Madonna dei Conadomini and the art of devotion

The two churches

A stone garden

The Infiorata of Noto, a modern tradition

Fountain of the Nymph Zizza: public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Badia di Sant’Agata

A compromise between Neoclassicism and Baroque

The senses tell about Palazzo Beneventano

The neo-Gothic seminary chapel: symbols, light and space

The senses tell about Palazzo Ducezio

The smallest Greek theatre in the world

Palazzo Trigona di Canicarao

The illusion of light and the decorative splendour

Baroque and the loss of balance in the 16th century

Altars, saints and sculptural works

The art of maiolica

A unifying project for the city of Catania

Militello: The story of an enlightened fiefdom

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Church of San Domenico

The freedom of worship and the Catholic Church’s role in the diffusion of Baroque

Expanded spaces, stucco and colourful lights

The city palace

The casket of austerity under the great dome

San Domenico and Gagliardi’s work

The interior and works of art

The city within the city

Religious architecture

The articulated interior spaces

The church of San Nicolò l’Arena: the majesty of an unfinished beauty

One city, three sites

The Palazzo dei due mori

The church and the monastery

Verticality and dynamism of the façade of the Church of San Carlo

Akrai and Syracuse: an unbreakable bond

The interior of the church: space and colour

A heritage of votive works

Piazza Duomo, the elephant fountain, the heart of the city

Unusual iconographies: the Burgos crucifix

Views denied, views conquered: the power of the devout Benedictines

The senses tell about Palazzo Zacco

A casket of precious works

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Rebirth and urban planning of the city of Noto

The dynamics of the Church of San Michele

The Antonino Uccello Birthplace Museum

Majestic exteriors, grandiose interiors

The Franciscan convent

The senses tell the Cathedral of San Giorgio

Barresi-Branciforte: the lords of the fiefdom and the modernisation of the town

The senses tell the Church of San Michele

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Paolo

Expansion, spatiality and light in the church of San Domenico

The Church of St. Mary of the Mountain

Scenography, lights and colours of the cathedral

The senses tell of the Cathedral of San Pietro

The senses tell of Palazzo della Cancelleria

The beginning of an authentic Baroque conception

The Church of St. Benedict

City and nature

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giuliano ai Crociferi

Madonna of the Militia: a singular warrior virgin

The Church of St. Paul

The palace, the town, the church

A new site for the church of San Giorgio

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Maria del Monte

Palazzo della Cancelleria: from former stable to the Nicastro family

The Church of St. Francis

The new roads of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista

The Badia di Sant’Agata (St. Agatha’s Abbey)

The senses tell the Cathedral of San Giorgio

The Church of St. John the Evangelist

Scicli, the city of Baroque scenery

The Benedictines’ library

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Sanctuary Church of Santa Maria della Stella

Palazzo Zacco, a balance between sobriety and decoration

Palazzo Trigona: a building with a complex shape