Michelangelo - “Father and Master of All the Arts”

Michelangelo

                                                                                                                    

Name	Michelangelo
Occupation	Painter, Architect, Poet, Sculptor.
Birth Date	6th March, 1475
Death Date	18th February, 1564
Place of Birth	Caprese(Republic of Florence), Italy
Place of Death	Rome, Italy
AKA	Michelangelo Buonarroti Michelangelo
Nickname	“Father and Master of All the Arts”
Full Name	Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni

Michelangelo is widely regarded as the most famous artist of Italian Renaissance. Among his works are the “David” and “Pieta” statues and the Sistine Chapel frescoes.

Introduction

Michelangelo born 6^th March, 1475 in Caprese, Italy to a family of moderate means in the banking business became an apprentice to a painter before studying in the sculpture gardens of powerful Medici family. His became one of the remarkable career as an artist in the Italian Renaissance, recognized in his own time for his own time for his artistic virtuosity. His works include the “David” and “Pieta” statues and the ceiling paintings of Rome’s Sistine Chapel, including the “Last Judgement”. He lived most of his life in Rome, where he died in 1564, at the age of 88.

Early Life

Painter, sculptor, architect and poet Michelangelo, one of the most famous artists of Italian Renaissance, was born Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni on March 6^th, 1475 in Caprese, Italy. His father, Leonardo di Buonarroti Simoni, realised early on that his son had no interest in family financial business and so agreed to apprentice him to the fashionable Florentine painter Domenico Ghirlandaio’s workshop, at the age of 13. There Michelangelo was exposed to the technique of fresco.

After a year’s experience with the recommendation of Ghirlandaio, Michelangelo moved into the palace of Florentine ruler Lorenzo the Magnificent, of the powerful Medici family, to study classical sculpture in the Medici gardens. The time was a fertile one for Michelangelo; his years with Medici family, 1489 to 1492, allowing him to study under the respected sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni and exposing him to prominent poets, scholars and learned Humanists. He also obtained special permission from the Catholic Church to study the cadavers for insight into anatomy, though exposure to corpses had an adverse effect on his health. These combined influences laid the groundwork for his distinctive style of muscular precision and reality combined with an almost lyrical beauty. Two relief sculptures that survive, “Battle of Centaurs” and “Madonna Seated on a Step”, are testaments to his unique talent at the tender age of 16.

Early Success and Influences

Michelangelo left to Bologna where he continued his studies after the death of Lorenzo and returned in 1495 to work as sculptor, modelling his style after masterpieces of classical antiquity.

Cardinal Riario of San Giorgio was so impressed with Michelangelo’s work and even invited him to Rome, where he lived and worked for the rest of his life. Not long after his relocation to Rome in 1498, his fledgling career was bolstered by another cardinal Jean Bilheres de Lagraulas, a representative of the French King Charles VIII to the pope. Michelangelo’s “Pieta”, a sculpture of Mary holding the dead Jesus across her lap, was finished in less than a year and was erected in the church of cardinal’s tomb, now its present location is at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

By the time Michelangelo returned to Florence, he had become something of an art star. He took over a commission for a statue of “David”, and turned the 17 foot piece of marble into a dominating figure. The strength of statue’s sinews, vulnerability of its nakedness, humanity of expression and overall courage made the “David” a prized representative of the city of Florence.

Art and Architecture

Michelangelo was asked to switch from sculpting to painting to decorate the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel while working on the tomb of Pope Julius II. The project fuelled his imagination, and the original plan for 12 apostles morphed into more than 300 figures on the ceiling of the sacred space. He completed the 65 foot ceiling alone, spending endless hours on his back and guarding the project jealously until revealing the finished work, on Oct 31, 1512.

The result is a transcended masterpiece of High Renaissance art incorporating the Christian symbology, prophecy and humanist principles that he had absorbed during his youth. The vivid vignettes of his Sistine ceiling produce a kaleidoscopic effect, with the most iconic image being the “Creation of Adam”.

Michelangelo then turned his focus towards architecture. He continued to work on the tomb of Julius II for the next few decades.  He also designed the Medici Chapel and the Laurentian Library- located opposite the Basilica San Lorenzo in Florence- to house the Medici Book Collection. These buildings are considered a turning point in the architectural history. His crowning glory came in 1546 when he was made the chief architect of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Literary Works and Personal Life

Michelangelo’s poetic impulse, which had been expressed in his sculptures, paintings and architecture began taking literary form in his later years. Although never married he was devoted to a pious and noble widow named Vittoria Colonna, the subject and recipient of many of his more than 300 poems and sonnets. Their friendship remained a great solace to Michelangelo until Colonna’s death 1547.

Death and Legacy

Following a brief illness, Michelangelo died on February 18, 1564 at his home in Macel de’Corvi, Rome. A nephew bore his body back to Florence, where he was revered by the public as the “father and master of all the arts”. He was laid to rest at the Basilica di Santa Croce- his chosen place of burial.

Unlike many artists, Michelangelo achieved fame and wealth during his lifetime. He also had the peculiar distinction of living to see the publication of teo biographies about his life (written by Giorgio Vasari and Ascanio Condivi). Appreciation of Michelangelo’s artistic mastery has endured for centuries, and his name has become synonymous with the best of Italian Renaissance.

Some illustrations of the Important works done by Michelangelo:

Figure 1: Battle of the Centaurs	Figure 2: Madonna Sitting on the Steps
Figure 3: Pieta	Figure 4: David
Figure 5: Sistine Chapel	Figure 6: The Last Judgement in Sistine Chapel
Figure 7: Creation of Adam in Sistine Chapel