Michelangelo

Michelangelo was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. He is one of the three great masters of the period, together with Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael, and his work is distinguished by its monumental conception of the human figure and by its emotional power.

Early Life and Training

Michelangelo was born in 1475 in Caprese, in Tuscany, and he was raised in Florence. He was apprenticed to the painter Domenico Ghirlandaio and later studied the sculpture collection of Lorenzo de' Medici.

He was befriended by Lorenzo, and he was exposed to the humanist culture of the Medici circle. After the expulsion of the Medici he left Florence and travelled to Bologna and to Rome.

His early works include the relief of the Battle of the Centaurs and the Madonna of the Stairs, which already show his interest in the muscular male figure and in the antique.

The Roman Sculptures

Michelangelo's first major success was the Pietà, carved for a chapel in Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome about 1499. It is admired for its technical finish and for its tender depiction of the sorrow of the Virgin.

He returned to Florence and carved the colossal statue of David, which was placed in front of the Palazzo Vecchio in 1504. The figure became a symbol of the republic and of civic virtue.

He worked in Florence on a series of projects, including the painting of the Holy Family and the cartoon for the Battle of Cascina, which was never completed.

The Sistine Chapel

In 1508 Michelangelo was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. He worked on the frescoes for four years, largely without assistance.

The ceiling depicts scenes from Genesis, including the Creation of Adam, and it is surrounded by figures of prophets and sibyls. The design is unified by the architecture that he painted and by the sequence of the narrative.

He later painted the Last Judgment on the altar wall, a work of great power and complexity. The nude figures provoked controversy, and they were partly covered in later centuries.

Architecture and Poetry

Michelangelo was appointed architect of Saint Peter's Basilica and designed the dome, which was completed after his death. He also designed the Laurentian Library and the Campidoglio in Rome.

He wrote poetry throughout his life, and the sonnets express his religious doubts and his love for the nobleman Tommaso de' Cavalieri. The poems are among the finest of the Italian Renaissance.

He died in Rome in 1564 at the age of eighty-eight. His body was taken to Florence and buried in Santa Croce.

Legacy

Michelangelo's work set the standard for the representation of the human body and for the expression of emotion in art. The terribilità, or awesomeness, of his figures influenced generations of artists.

He is regarded as the supreme master of marble sculpture, and the David and the Pietà are among the most famous works ever carved. His architecture shaped the development of the baroque.

His drawings and his poetry are also central to his reputation. He is remembered as an artist who pursued the ideal of beauty with relentless intensity.

The Medici Chapels

Michelangelo designed the Medici Chapel in the church of San Lorenzo in Florence, for which he carved the tombs of Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici. The figures of Dawn, Dusk, Night, and Day recline on the sarcophagi.

The chapel is a meditation on time and on death, and the architecture and the sculpture form a single design. The work was left unfinished when Michelangelo departed for Rome.

He also designed the Laurentian Library, with its staircase and its reading room. The library is a landmark in the development of mannerist architecture.

The Last Judgment

The Last Judgment, painted on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel between 1536 and 1541, depicts the second coming of Christ and the judgment of the souls. The composition is dominated by the figure of Christ, who raises the saved and condemns the damned.

The work provoked controversy for its treatment of nudity and for its theological emphasis on salvation by grace. The figures were partly covered by drapery in the following decades.

The fresco is regarded as one of the supreme achievements of Western art. Its influence on later artists, including the baroque masters, was profound.

Architecture

Michelangelo was appointed chief architect of Saint Peter's Basilica in 1546. He simplified the plan and designed the dome, which was completed after his death.

He also designed the Palazzo Farnese and the Campidoglio, the civic centre of Rome. The Campidoglio is a masterpiece of urban design, with its oval pavement and its symmetrical buildings.

His architecture is characterised by the monumental scale and by the plastic treatment of the classical orders. It prepared the way for the baroque style.

Poetry and Character

Michelangelo wrote sonnets and madrigals throughout his life. The poems express his love for Vittoria Colonna and for Tommaso de' Cavalieri, and his anxiety about salvation.

His character was tempestuous and his relations with patrons were often difficult. He was famously independent and refused to be treated as a mere craftsman.

He is remembered as an artist of immense energy and ambition. His poetry and his letters reveal a man of deep feeling and of strong opinions.

See also

• Renaissance sculpture
• Sistine Chapel