Ontwerpen voor bassins en monstransen 1698

Filippo Passarini created these designs for basins and monstrances in an etching; we can see his name signed in the lower right corner of the page. During Passarini’s time, Rome was a city undergoing significant transformation, with the Catholic Church seeking to reassert its influence through grand architectural projects. These designs, with their elaborate ornamentation and religious symbolism, reflect the values of the Counter-Reformation. The prominence of angels might evoke ideas about purity and devotion. The visual language of power and authority that the Church tried to convey is very much present here, with symbols of divinity. However, the designs also reflect the changing artistic tastes of the period, blending religious fervor with the emerging aesthetics of the Baroque era. This etching invites us to reflect on how art serves not only as a mirror of its time but also as a stage for negotiating identity, power, and belief.