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Why were oval plans popular in Baroque church architecture?
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Baroque art and architecture
Judith with Her Maidservant, oil painting by Artemisia Gentileschi, 1618–19; at the Pitti Palace, Florence.
In Baroque church architecture, oval plans were favored because they helped architects achieve the movement, drama, and sensory appeal central to the style. By utilizing complex, non-static shapes like the oval, architects could create a dynamic opposition and interpenetration of spaces that contrasted with the stable, precise symmetry of the High Renaissance.12
These curvilinear forms were instrumental in the Counter-Reformation’s goal of engaging the faithful through an overtly emotional and sensory experience. The use of such shapes, alongside other techniques like hidden light sources and illusionistic painting, served to heighten the worshiper's sense of motion and sensuality, directing them toward heavenly concerns.12