The Madonna di Galliera is a church with a Renaissance facade and

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

interiors, located on Via Manzoni, in central Bologna, Italy. It stands in front of the Palazzo Ghisilardi Fava. The present name over the portal is the ''Chiesa di Filippini Madonna di Galliera e Filippo Neri''.

History

The church was acquired in 1622 by the Oratorians of St Phillip Neri, who reconstructed the interiors, and built the adjacent

Oratory of San Filippo Neri The Oratory of San Filippo Neri in Bologna is a restored late-Baroque religious structure in central Bologna. It is located on Via Manzoni. The Oratory was constructed from the sacristy of the adjacent church of the Madonna di Galliera. This chur ...

. The original church at the site was founded in 1304 by a charitable order which translates into ''Confraternity of the Shameful Poor'' (Compagnia dei Poveri Vergognosi). By 1479 they began construction of the sculpturally rich stone Renaissance facade, with a design attributed to Egidio Montanari, and sculptures by Zilio Montanari. The interiors were all refurbished by the Oratorians, including reconstruction by Giuseppe Antonio Torri in 1684. The interior includes frescoes by

Giuseppe Marchesi Giuseppe Marchesi (1699–1771) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Bologna. He was also known as ''il Sansone'' for his herculean build. He was first a pupil of the painter Aureliano Milani and then of Marcantonio Fra ...

in the ceiling, apse and ceiling of the 1st chapel on the left, and altarpieces by Francesco Albani (''Holy Family''); Guercino (''Filippo Neri''); Angelo Michele Colonna;

Lorenzo Pasinelli Lorenzo Pasinelli (September 4, 1629 – March 4, 1700) was an Italian painter active mainly in Bologna during the late Baroque period. He was born in Bologna, and initially trained in the studio of Simone Cantarini. He then pursued studies in R ...

; Teresa Muratori; Girolamo Donnini; and Marcantonio Franceschini (Madonna, St Francis of Sales and other Saints). The sacristy has further paintings by Giovan Andrea and Elisabetta Sirani, Cesare Gennari, and Albani. The interior includes sculptures by Giuseppe Mazza (stucco angels on main altar),

Angelo Piò Angelo Gabriello Piò (Bologna, 1690- Bologna, 1770) was an Italian sculptor, active in Bologna in a Rococo style. Life In Bologna, he studied from 1711 to 1712 under Andrea Ferreri (1673–1744) . He was also a pupil of Giuseppe Maria Mazza. A ...

, and

Silvestro Giannotti Silvestro is both a surname and a masculine Italian given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname: * Alex Silvestro (born 1988), American football player * Chris Silvestro (born 1979), Scottish footballer * Jim Silvestro (born 1963), Au ...

. The main altar (circa 1750) was designed by

Francesco Galli Bibiena Francesco Galli, called Francesco da Bibiena (or da Bibbiena), a member of the theatrical Galli da Bibiena family and younger brother of Ferdinando Galli, was born at Bologna in 1659. He first studied under Lorenzo Pasinelli; but he was afterwar ...

. The church suffered damage in World War II (see

Bombing of Bologna in World War II During World War II the Italian city of Bologna, the regional capital and largest city of Emilia-Romagna, suffered nearly a hundred air raids by the Royal Air Force and the USAAF, mostly aimed at disabling its strategically important marshalling ...

). In 2014, the church was undergoing restoration.Genus Bononiae
short entry.

References

Roman Catholic churches in Bologna Renaissance architecture in Bologna Baroque architecture in Bologna 1304 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in Italy Roman Catholic churches completed in 1684 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1479 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy {{Italy-RC-church-stub