MONNOT, Pierre Etienne
(b. Orchamps-Vennes, 1657, d. 1733, Roma)

Monument of Pope Gregory XV

after 1697
Marble
Sant'Ignazio, Rome

Although executed in the first decade of the eighteenth century, this monument belongs to the High Baroque period. With its sumptuous display of coloured marble, it is the work of Pierre Le Gros the Younger and Pierre-Étienne Monnot. The billowing of coloured fabrics evokes the mystery of sculpture ranging beyond the limits of its usual language, intent on the spells of wonder and optical illusionism.