Francis Borromini (1599-1667). who initially worked as Bernini's helper. but later he entered into fierce competition with his mentor. he was the boldest and most innovative baroque architect. His attitude towards decoration differed significantly from that represented by Bernini. because he did not have any sculptural practice. For Borromini, architecture was an independent form of sculpture, so he treated the entire surface of the wall visually, preferring monochrome effects over colors. Already in his first assignment, Church of San Carlo alle Ouattro Fontane. his complete disregard for convention was evident - this astonishing spatial composition consists of a complex series of shapes, with two equilateral triangles turning into an oval at the level of the dome and a circle at the level of the lantern. The facade was added later, where a series of concavities and convexities were used, it was to become a widely imitated pattern. Most of Borromini's later structures suffered greatly from this. that were started by other architects. Nevertheless, he managed to achieve many remarkable effects, especially in Sant'lvo della Sapienza and the seemingly independent towers flanking the SantAgnese dome - this motif was later widely used. Borromini's most prestigious commission was the reconstruction of the interior of the early Christian Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, which the architect transformed into a huge baroque temple.
The third most important baroque architect in Rome was the Floor of Cortona. What a strange thing. Cortona was opposed to the idea of unity of Borromini's arts, preferring whitewashed interior walls. Nevertheless, his mature works combine elements borrowed from both Borromini and Bernini: for example, the façade of Santa Maria della Pace uses deep modeling. but Cortona goes even further here and rebuilds the entire square. next to which the church is located, to get the right urban background.
In other parts of Italy, only a handful of 17th-century architects can compare with their contemporary Roman architects. One of them is Francesco Maria Ricchino (1583-1658), whose buildings in Milan can be unreservedly juxtaposed with the most innovative Roman designs. Bartholomew White (ok. 1590-1657) he decorated Genoa with some of the most beautiful palaces of this century, becoming a worthy heir to Alessi in exploiting the slope of the city.
The leading baroque architect in Naples was the Lombardian Cosimo Fanzago (1591-1678), whose early buildings, especially the cloisters of the Certosa di San Martino. they are restrained and classically inspired. Another southern Italian center, where it flourished, intellectual form of baroque, was the small city of Lecce. where a group of architects from Giuseppe Zimbalo (creates 1659-86) she put a number of churches and public buildings at the forefront.