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Michelangelo1

Michelangelo1 Michelangelo is one of the greatest creators in the history of art. Most people recognize the genius for his beautiful sculpture "David" and his breathtaking paintings on the walls and ceiling of the Sistine chapel. However, along with his sculptures and paintings, Michelangelo was an accomplished poet and architect; which is a reflection of his amazing creative ability. Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475, in a small Italian city, Caprese, but he spent a large portion of his life in Rome, Italy. It was there that Michelangelo created one of the most famous works of art, the marble sculpture, Pieta. A controversially youthful Mary is seated, holding the dead Christ across her lap. The mother holding her dead son does not have a look of sorrow on her face, but a look of restraint. The Pieta displays incredible detail from the young artist; Michelangelo was only 25 when he completed the masterpiece. Howard Hibbard, author of Michelangelo, writes that St. Bernardine of Siena described the Pieta as The Virgin holding the body of her dead son, thinking back to the days in Bethlehem when he was a baby in her arms, dreaming that he has merely fallen asleep (45). Perhaps that was one of Michelangelo's artistic intentions of the religious sculpture. Another interesting passage suggests, God made truly human, now dead, whose body is Corpus Domini of Christian communion. His mother who is also, symbolically, the Church (Hibbard 46) holds him. Hibbard claims the preceding passage represents "a symbol of the mystery of Christianity," which could also be one of Michelangelo's intentions. Also, one characteristic of every Pieta, other than Michelango's, is the awkwardness of the Mother and child; the artist solved this common problem by draping Mary in long, flowing clothes and arranging the two bodies to form a pyramid. Michelangelo has had many influential people persuade his works. Hibbard states that with the Pieta, "We sense the debt to [Michelangelo's] Early Renaissance forebears - Verrocchio and Jacopo della Quercia - and of course this is still, chronologically a work of the Quattrocento. Highly finished and polished, it shows a Quattrocento love of detail; linear drapery folds pile up in ornamental abundance" (46) Two items are peculiar about the Michelangelo's Pieta, Mary's youthful face and the artist's signature, which is found only on the Pieta. Common knowledge shows that the artist gave Mary a youthful face because women retain their beauty longer if they are virgins, and perhaps Michelangelo sensed his great accomplishment and felt proud to chisel his name on the work; certainly, it was fitting for such an immaculate work of art. The Pieta is considered untouchable by today's art world; a work that will never be duplicated. Michelangelo's Pieta is one of the most notable works of all time. When Michelangelo moved back to Florence, Italy, the artist created one of his most recognizable sculptures, the David. Unlike most works of David, which show the young boy after his victory over Goliath, Michelangelo's David is shown right before battle. The statue is overwhelmingly beautiful, with an athletic body and powerful, masculine hands. But, the most notable feature of the gigantic statue is it's magnificent head and face. David's eyes are large and hypnotic, the eyes alone give onlookers the tense mood of the boy about kill or be killed. Experts say that the David's face is actually Michelangelo's projection of his own "troubled ambition" (Hibbard 61). Hibbard also claims that Michelangelo's intention of David's torso was a version of a "Hellenistic athlete - powerful and occasionally knotty, full of observed detail..." (61). Artists who influenced Michelangelo's David are Nicola Pisano and Donatello. Michelangelo, himself, could have easily been considered an influence in the David. A drawing that Michelangelo made had an interesting poem by the artist that stated, "David with the sling/ and I with the bow..." (Hibbard 53). Also while in Florence, Michelangelo produced one of a series of three Madonna's, the Bruges Madonna. This marble sculpture, the same material used for the Pieta and David, shows the Christ child seemingly climbing down from the lap of his mother. Mary holds a book in her right hand; perhaps she just finished reading to the young boy. Although not as detailed as the Pieta, the work shows great precision in the clothing worn by Mary and the hair and face of the child. Michelangelo beautifully sculpted the pair's intertwined hands. Hibbard makes the claim that "it is this future that Mary seems to understand in all of Michelangelo's early Madonna's, and to accept without tears in the Pieta" (74). One of the artist's intention was "Christ's silhouette within that of his mother" (Hibbard 74). Hibbard also claims that Michelangelo's boredom with "in ornate folds and drapery" influenced the Bruges Madonna (74). Eventhough the today's art world calls this Madonna one of Michelangelo's more simple works, it remains one of his most beautiful. Michelangelo was an innovator, and many artists who followed him admired and copied his style. A recent work of the artist sold for close to $10,000,000. Michelangelo's father, the two men had an unusual, but close relationship, would have been proud. Michelangelo death took away one of the most accomplished artists to ever sculpt a sculpture, paint a painting, draw a drawing, or build a building. He is truly missed by all. Bibliography: Works Cited Hibbard, Howard. Michelangelo. New York: Harper and Row, 1974. Works Consulted Hale, Phillip ed. Great Masters in Art. New York: Crown Publishers, 1935.

Word Count: 890