Pietro Paolo Troisi (1686-1750) : a Maltese Baroque artist

Abstract

The exuberant style of the architecture, sculpture, painting and music of the baroque period was mainly the result of the directives of the Council of Trent, which promoted the need to glorify God and the church as a response to the Protestant condemnation of the pomp and ceremony of the Catholic church. The baroque was an age of absolutism. The monarchs and princes of Europe contributed significantly to the spread of the arts through their patronage. Architecture and the arts were highly ornamental and favoured a style of exuberance. Places reflected the absolutism of the rulers and churches aimed for the glorification of the divine. It was against this background that architects, painters, sculptors and other artists were creating wonderful baroque architectural and artistic works throughout Europe, such as the works of masters like Bernini, Algardi or Melchiorre Cafa, as well as those by lesser known artists such as the Maltese Pietro Paolo Troisi.