Memory and the Cloister: Mapping the Architecture of Observant Franciscan Identity in Brescia, 1422–1610

This paper demonstrates the effectiveness and importance of taking a longue durée approach to expressions of Observant Franciscan identity communicated through material and visual culture, paying attention to continuities from medieval monastic architecture and memory arts in early modernity. From the sixteenth century onward several religious orders with medieval roots possessed institutionalized “Observant” branches. Early modernists rarely pay sustained attention to these orders, focusing instead on the Jesuit order, which is considered archetypal and representative for this period. Yet, Observant Franciscans likewise attained a global presence and had considerable societal impact. My analysis of how a community of Observant Franciscan religious gradually achieved a centrally located convent in the city of Brescia, as well as of how they visually commemorated their trajectory of architectural consolidation, demonstrates the relevance of studying visual and architectural sources for the long history of Observant movements in the European context. Each of the three sections of my paper proposes a different methodological approach for doing so.