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MICHELANGELO BUONNARROTI - (1475-1564)
 Bacchus, (1497)
 Charon, (from the Sistine
Chapel ) (1508-12)
 Sibyl of Delphi,(from the Sistine
Chapel ) (1508-12)
 Sibyl of Cumae, (from the Sistine
Chapel ) (1508-12)
 Atlas, (1520-23)
Michelangelo was painter, sculptor,
architect, and poet, and one of the
greatest figures of the Renaissance.
Michelangelo's father was of minor
Florentine nobility, throughout all of
his life Michelangelo would remain touchy
on the subject of his birth for it may
have been pride that caused his families
initial opposition to his apprenticeship
as painter.
He was apprenticed to Domenico Ghilandaio
for a term of three years and from him
Michelangelo learned the elements of the
fresco ( painting pigments directly into
wet plaster) technique.
After studying with that master,
Michelangelo then transferred to the
school set up by Florence's famous patron
of the arts, the Medici family.
His work in the Medici school soon
brought him to the attention of Lorenzo
de Medici, who would remain his constant
patron and champion. Although a sculptor
first, Michelangelo studied drawings he
made of the early Renaissance masters
Giotto and Massaccio.
After Lorenzo's death (April 8, 1492),
the political situation in Florence
deteriorated. The Domenican monk
Savonarola began an attack on the Medici
and other wealthy families of Florence
who patronized the arts. Savonarola
preached against the merging of Christian
and pagan (classical) themes in art and
literature. He would incite the people of
Florence and organize a "bonfire of
the vanities". Into this massive
burning pyre countless numbers of
Renaissance works were destroyed. These
events would profoundly influence
Michelangelo for the rest of his life.
The Medici family would eventually leave
the city of Florence, and Michelangelo
would as well.
Michelangelo would travel to Rome and
live there from 1496-50. There he would
carve the two statues which established
his fame: the "Bacchus" and the
"Pieta".
The "Bacchus" was probably
modeled after one of Praxiteles', and was
displayed by a friend of Michelangelo's.
Oddly, the arm and drinking cup were
broken off to give the appearance of the
antique, but Michelangelo would later
replace these appendages. The statue,
even with its famous authorship, was in
fact mistaken for an antique and placed
in the Uffizi Museum in Florence with the
classical statues in the 1600's. It
remained in public collections in
Florence until 1944, when Hitler and the
Germans attempted to move it to Linz,
Germany where it was to be included in a
gallery dedicated to Hitler's mother.
The "Bacchus" is the reversal
of the classic contrapposto stance, a
term used to describe the shift of weight
from one leg to another producing a
"S" shaped curve in the spine.
This adds a realistic and natural
appearance to a sculpture. It instead
appears wobbly, indicating the
intoxication of the god. Although
obviously antique in subject matter, the
"Bacchus" is presented in a
different light. While the
"Bacchus" of antiquity is
usually represented as dignified or even
indifferent at times, Michelangelo's
"Bacchus" is clearly drunk and
therefore humanized. The intricately
carved little satyr at his feet indicates
that the statue was meant to be viewed in
the round.
He returned to Florence in 1501 and
remained there until 1506 working on his
masterpiece the "David."
In the spring of 1505 Pope Julius II
commissioned Michelangelo to create his
tomb. Creative differences between the
artist and the Pope shelved the project
for a time, and Michelangelo in 1508
began work on the Sistine Chapel's upper
walls and ceiling. Michelangelo never
wanted the commission for the painting of
the ceiling of the chapel, he wished it
to go to Raphael, he merely wanted to
work on the sculpting's for the tomb of
the pope. Michelangelo wanted to be known
first as a sculptor, it is ironic that
the Sistine's ceiling painting's would be
what Michelangelo is best known for.
The ceiling was painted almost entirely
by Michelangelo's hand in a very short
time. Began in 1508, the first half of
the ceiling was completed and officially
unveiled on August 15, 1511. The
remainder was rapidly completed on
October 31 one year later.
From the moment of it's completion the
Sistine Ceiling has always been regarded
as one of the supreme masterpieces of
pictorial art and Michelangelo was, at
the age of 37, not only recognized as the
greatest artist of his day, but was also
regarded as having raised the status of
the artist to such a high pinnacle that
he could be referred to as
"divine".
His devout religious beliefs, as well as
his dedication to representing the
passionate side of man, can be seen in
all his works.
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