baroque use of the oval

Baroque architects preferred curved lines to straight ones and complex forms to those which were regular and simple. The ideal form of the Renaissance had been the circle, which is symmetrical about its diameter. Baroque architects privileged the oval to the circle because it had greater variety in its changing curvature. This changing curvature was appealing because it implied a feeling of movement along its longer axes. This feeling of movement could be intensified through the use of variations or combinations of different ovals, introduced in more complex plans such as San Carlino. This effect was strengthened by Baroque architects through their use of incomplete ovals, so that one space leads to the next.