[35, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1598–1680, self-portrait; Four Rivers fountain on Piazza Navona, Rome] A great pioneer of Baroque was the dynamic Italian named Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Known as the "Michelangelo of Baroque," Bernini could do it all: he was a great sculptor…a painter…and a ground-breaking architect — he designed St. Peter's Square.

[36, Ecstasy of St. Theresa, 1652, Bernini, Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome] Embracing the theatrical nature of Baroque art, Bernini turned this chapel into a theater. In fact, members of the family who paid for the art got to look on from the VIP box. Using all his artistic tools and 3-D tricks, Bernini invigorates reality with emotion. Center stage, an angel pierces St. Teresa's heart with a heavenly arrow. As the saint famously described her ecstasy: "The pain was so sharp that I cried aloud. But so delightful that I wished it would last forever."

[37, Villa Borghese, Rome] At this elegant Roman mansion, Bernini sculpted several masterpieces for his patron, a wealthy cardinal who invested in great art meant to decorate these very rooms.

[38] Bernini, employing both genius and chisel, masterfully brought marble to life. His Rape of Persephone packs a dramatic punch. Persephone's entire body seems to scream for help as evil Pluto drags his catch into the underworld. His three-headed dog howls triumphantly.

[39, Apollo and Daphne, 1625, Bernini, Borghese Gallery, Rome] Bernini's Apollo and Daphne is quintessential Baroque in how it captures a dramatic moment: Apollo — happily wounded by Cupid's arrow — chases Daphne who's saved by turning into a tree. Bernini captures the instant when, just as Apollo's about to catch Daphne, her fingers turn to leaves, her toes sprout roots…and Apollo is in for one rude surprise. The statue — as much air as stone — makes a supernatural event seem real. This pre-Christian scene — while plenty fleshy — comes with a church-pleasing moral: chasing earthly pleasures leads only to pain and frustration.

[40, David, 1623, Bernini, Borghese Gallery, Rome] By the way, to appreciate the boldness of Bernini's Baroque style, compare his version of David with Michelangelo's Renaissance David from a century earlier. Michelangelo's is poised, balanced, and thoughtful — perfect for the cerebral Renaissance era. Bernini's, on the other hand, is a Baroque action figure — his whole body wound like a spring as he prepares to slay the giant — showing the energy of the age. Bernini was a brash young man of twenty-five when he sculpted this — and the determined face of David is his own.

[41] Bernini inspired a generation of artists whose work is found throughout Rome. In fact, the city of Rome itself is like a Baroque work of art.

[42] Its great churches sport façades with trend-setting Baroque elements: classical columns on a gargantuan scale, Greek-style pediments, and straight lines broken by dips, curls, and decorative medallions.

[43] Interiors, of course, are also decorated to the hilt in the Baroque style. You hardly know where to look. Every inch is slathered with ornamentation — oh-wow spiral columns framing scenes that almost jump to life, cupids doing flip flops, explosive gilded starbursts, and ceilings opening up into the heavens…it's all glorious Baroque.