Includes bibliographical references (pages 603-607). "Meticulously researched over a ten-year period, Nick Mileti has pieced together a gripping account of one of the most famous, but largely unexamined, artistic rivalries ever---the one-sided rivalry between the architect, Francesco Borromini (the instigator), and GianLorenzo Bernini, the greatest overall artist in history. Without a doubt, a number of his startling, but logical, observations and conclusions will send Bernini, Borromini, and Baroque scholars scrambling back to their libraries and computers. Everything came easy for GianLorenzo Bernini---his art, his style, even his loves. A confidant of monarchs, princes and popes, Bernini was a more talented sculptor and architect than Michelangelo, more successful with the ladies than Raphael, cooler than Guido Reni, and had more common sense than Galileo. The urbane Bernini was a sought-after conversationalist, got rich from his art, and even dressed nice. Bernini has been called the sanest genius who ever lived. Francesco Borromini's life, on the other hand, was a daily struggle. His own worse enemy, he was one of the first afflicted with what is now called 'artistic temperament.' He was anti-social, morose, suspicious, quarrelsome, disdained money, and irritated everyone he felt was interfering with his artistic vision---especially his patrons. Worse, Borromini knocked on Bernini's door all of his life and came up with a handful of marble dust. What does one do when faced with the impossible (self-imposed) task of topping the greatest all-around artist in history? Here's what you do: For your entire adult life you try every devious, malicious trick you can think of. When nothing works, you kill yourself. "---Cover page [4].
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