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Michelangelo: Renaissance Sculptor
The statue of Laocoön and his sons, sculpted in 25 BC, inspired Michaelangelo and many other Italian sculptors.—
Laocoön was a smart but unlucky Trojan. When the Greeks left a huge wooden horse as a gift for the Trojans, Laocoön figured out that it was a trick. According to the tale, he threw a spear at the wooden horse, which of course didn't do a lot of good, and then two serpents came out of the sea and took away Laocoön and his sons, preventing them from further warning the Trojans. The Trojans then brought the wooden horse into their city, and out popped a bunch of Greeks. It was a bad day to be a Trojan.
But the story inspired an impressive sculpture, and that sculpture later inspired the great Michelangelo.
OBJECTIVES
OBJECTIVES
Describe the early life of Michelangelo
Discuss his important sculptures
Analyze figures from the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
Explain the importance of the Dome of Saint Peter's Basilica
VOCABULARY
MICHELANGELO’S LIFE AND PLACE IN THE RENAISSANCE
MICHELANGELO’S LIFE AND PLACE IN THE RENAISSANCE
Michelangelo's Place in the Renaissance
In 1503, Pope Julius II became head of the Catholic Church. He was an effective pope who changed the political landscape of Europe. But what we remember him for today is his patronage of artists, particularly Michelangelo. During his papacy, he did much to beautify the city of Rome and attracted a number of great artists away from Florence. In 1506, he commissioned them to design and decorate his pet project: Saint Peter's Basilica.
During the High Renaissance, artistic styles became simpler. Artists pared down their works to the essentials so that the viewer would not be distracted from the main themes of the work. See if you notice this in the works of Michelangelo.
Michelangelo's Life
Michelangelo's Life
Marble statuette, the Shrine of San Domenico, Church of San Domenico — Wikimedia
Michelangelo Di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (no wonder we just call him Michelangelo!) was a sculptor, architect, painter, and poet. Along with Leonardo da Vinci, he was a driving force in the Italian High Renaissance. Like da Vinci, he influenced artists of his generation as well as future generations.
Michelangelo's father was a government official in Florence. At age thirteen, Michelangelo went to work as an apprentice for the painter Domenico Ghirlandaio. Michelangelo was also a fixture in the Medici house, and he learned much about sculpture from their sculpture gardens, which were filled with Greek and Roman examples.
His patron Lorenzo di Medici (the Magnificent) died in 1492, and two years later, Michelangelo left Florence and settled in Bologna. He had already begun sculpting reliefs, and in Bologna he created several marble statuettes for the Shrine of San Domenico in the Church of San Domenico. You can see that the statuette is posed in a casual manner that will be seen again in the statue of David.
Notes
Record the image of Michelangelo's marble statuette at the Shrine of San Domenico in your online art journal. Use your notes, and don't forget to save your work.
Next Michelangelo traveled to Rome. In this time of intellectual discovery, statues and ruins from Rome's heyday were often excavated. Michelangelo was able to study these relics of the past and integrate the styles he saw with his own style. This led to the creation of his first large sculpture, Bacchus. This work, which focused on pagan mythology, was admired in Renaissance Rome.
Michelangelo was deeply attached to Florence, his home city, but as an adult he spent most of his time in Rome doing the bidding of popes. When he died, his body was brought home to Florence and laid to rest in a monument in the church of Santa Croce.
MICHELANGELO'S ART
MICHELANGELO'S ART
When he was in his early twenties, Michelangelo was handed the task of creating a statue of Mary and Jesus. Working with a giant slab of marble in Rome, the artist completed his great masterpiece, The Pieta, by the age of twenty-five. The Pieta was the only piece that he signed and is a representation of Mary holding Jesus on her lap after he died on the cross. It incorporates the best of Michelangelo's predecessors with his own unique vision of the new style. Rather than Mary being an older woman, Michelangelo sculpted her as a young woman symbolizing purity of soul.
Sistine Chapel
In 1505, Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to paint the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. It took him four years to complete this masterpiece. Working from a scaffold he built, Michelangelo painted his scenes directly onto the vault of the papal chapel. Contrary to popular myth, he painted while standing rather than lying on his back. The style of painting Michelangelo used was fresco, which was unfamiliar to him since he was primarily a sculptor.
The scenes include:
God Separating Light from Darkness
Creation of Adam, the Creation of Eve
Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve
The Flood
The Last Judgement (along the back wall)
Even though Christ is not actually pictured in the painting, His presence is foretold by these other figures. Through this work, Michelangelo demonstrated a deep understanding of human anatomy and movement. The Sistine Chapel would forever change the world of painting in Western civilization.
Saint Peter's Basilica
Michelangelo was made chief architect at St. Peter's Basilica in 1546. He ultimately became responsible for the altar end of the building on the exterior and for the final form of its famous dome.
Read the information on Michelangelo's dome at both of the following links. You will be responsible for the information in your assessment at the end of the lesson:
Michelangelo was made chief architect at Saint Peter's Basilica in 1546. He took charge of the church's construction making his own changes while honoring Bramante's original design. Michelangelo ultimately became responsible for the altar end of the building on the exterior and for the final form of its famous dome which included a ribbed design used from Florence. The original wooden model he worked from can now be found at the Vatican.
When Michelangelo created The Bound Slave and the Dying Slave, he imagined the forms were trapped in stone. Thus, by removing the stone around them, he was actually releasing them from captivity. Although these were left incomplete, they are a record of the way in which artist approached carving.
The Tomb of Julius II
The Laurentian Library
The Medici Tombs
The Last Judgment
The Campidoglio
Michelangelo's Achievements
Michelangelo was held in high regard by all of the aristocracy, but more importantly, he was esteemed by his peers. Ludovico Ariosto stated, "Michael more than mortal, divine angel." Michelangelo was hailed as divine, and his dome for St. Peters set the standard around the world. Even the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. is derived from Michelangelo's work.
David
Michelangelo's David, the pinnacle of his early work, depicts a youthful figure deep in thought just before he faces Goliath. The work is revered for its ability to convey strength and power while remaining controlled and reflective. Rather than sculpting David after his fight with Goliath as other artists had done, Michelangelo instead portrayed the young warrior before battle, giving him a look of defiance. Another feature of the sculpture is David's disproportionately large head and hands.
LET'S REVIEW!
LET'S REVIEW!
In this lesson, you have covered the following topics:
Michelangelo's life and famous works, such as:
Pieta
David
Sistine Chapel
Saint Peter's Basilica
Complete the quiz before moving on.
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