Brilliant Michelangelo. Sculptures by Michelangelo Buonarroti, their photo and description

Michelangelo Buonarroti is considered by many to be the most famous artist. Among his most famous works are the statues of "David" and "Pieta", the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel.

consummate master

The work of Michelangelo Buonarroti can be briefly described as the greatest phenomenon in art of all time - this is how he was evaluated during his lifetime, and this is how they continue to be considered to this day. Several of his works in painting, sculpture and architecture are among the most famous in the world. Although the frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican are probably the most famous works of the artist, he considered himself primarily a sculptor. Engaging in multiple arts was not uncommon in his time. All of them were based on a drawing. Michelangelo was engaged in all his life and other forms of art only at certain periods. The high appreciation of the Sistine Chapel is partly a reflection of the increased attention paid to painting in the 20th century, and partly the result of the fact that many of the master's works were left unfinished.

A side effect of Michelangelo's lifetime fame was a more detailed description of his path than any other artist of the time. He became the first artist whose biography was published before his death, there were even two of them. The first was the last chapter of a book on the life of artists (1550) by the painter and architect Giorgio Vasari. It was dedicated to Michelangelo, whose work was presented as the culmination of the perfection of art. Despite such praise, he was not entirely satisfied and commissioned his assistant Ascanio Condivi to write a separate short book (1553), probably based on the comments of the artist himself. In it, Michelangelo, the work of the master are depicted the way he wanted others to see them. After Buonarroti's death, Vasari published a refutation in the second edition (1568). Although scholars prefer Condivi's book to Vasari's lifetime description, the latter's importance in general and its frequent reprinting in many languages ​​have made the work a major source of information about Michelangelo and other Renaissance artists. Buonarroti's fame also resulted in the preservation of countless documents, including hundreds of letters, essays and poems. However, despite the huge amount of accumulated material, in controversial issues often only the point of view of Michelangelo himself is known.

Brief biography and creativity

Painter, sculptor, architect and poet, one of the most famous artists of the Italian Renaissance was born under the name of Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni March 6, 1475 in Caprese, Italy. His father, Leonardo di Buanarotta Simoni, briefly served as magistrate in a small village when he and his wife Francesca Neri had the second of five sons, but they returned to Florence when Michelangelo was still an infant. Due to the illness of his mother, the boy was given up for education in the family of a stonemason, about which the great sculptor later joked that he absorbed a hammer and chisels with the nurse's milk.

Indeed, Michelangelo was least interested in studying. The work of painters in neighboring temples and the repetition of what he saw there, according to his early biographers, attracted him much more. Michelangelo's school friend, Francesco Granacci, who was six years older than him, introduced his friend to the artist Domenico Ghirlandaio. The father realized that his son was not interested in the family financial business and agreed to give him at the age of 13 as an apprentice to a fashionable Florentine painter. There he became acquainted with the fresco technique.

Medici gardens

Michelangelo spent only a year in the studio when he had a unique opportunity. On the recommendation of Ghirlandaio, he moved to the palace of the Florentine ruler Lorenzo the Magnificent, a powerful member of the Medici family, to study classical sculpture in his gardens. It was a fertile time for Michelangelo Buonarroti. The biography and work of the novice artist were marked by acquaintance with the elite of Florence, the talented sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni, prominent poets, scientists and humanists of that time. Buonarroti also received special permission from the church to examine corpses for anatomy, although this had a negative effect on his health.

The combination of these influences formed the basis of Michelangelo's recognizable style: muscular precision and realism combined with an almost lyrical beauty. Two surviving bas-reliefs, "The Battle of the Centaurs" and "Madonna at the Stairs", testify to his unique talent at the age of 16.

Early success and influence

The political struggle after the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent forced Michelangelo to flee to Bologna, where he continued his studies. He returned to Florence in 1495 and began working as a sculptor, borrowing style from the masterpieces of classical antiquity.

There are several versions of the intriguing story of Michelangelo's sculpture Cupid, which was artificially aged to resemble rare antiques. One version claims that the author wanted to achieve a patina effect with this, and according to another, his art dealer buried the work in order to pass it off as an antique.

Cardinal Riario San Giorgio bought the Cupid, believing the sculpture to be such, and demanded his money back when he discovered that he had been deceived. In the end, the deceived buyer was so impressed by the work of Michelangelo that he allowed the artist to keep the money for himself. The cardinal even invited him to Rome, where Buonarroti lived and worked until the end of his days.

"Pieta" and "David"

Shortly after moving to Rome in 1498, another cardinal, Jean Bilaire de Lagrola, papal envoy of the French King Charles VIII, promoted his career. Michelangelo's sculpture "Pieta", which depicts Mary holding the dead Jesus on her knees, was completed in less than a year and was placed in the temple with the tomb of the cardinal. At 1.8m wide and almost the same height, the statue was moved five times until it found its current location in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

Carved from a single piece, the fluidity of the fabric, the position of the subjects and the "movement" of the skin of Pieta (which means "pity" or "compassion") plunged its first viewers into fear. Today it is an incredibly revered work. Michelangelo created her when he was only 25 years old.

By the time Michelangelo returned to Florence, he was already a celebrity. The sculptor received a commission for a statue of David, which two previous sculptors had unsuccessfully tried to make, and turned a five-meter block of marble into a dominant figure. The strength of the sinews, the vulnerable nudity, the humanity of the expressions and the general boldness made the "David" a symbol of Florence.

Art and architecture

Other commissions followed, including an ambitious design for the tomb of Pope Julius II, but work was cut short when Michelangelo was asked to move from sculpture to painting to decorate the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

The project fired the artist's imagination, and the original plan for writing 12 apostles grew into over 300 figures. This work was later completely removed due to fungus in the plaster and then restored. Buonarroti dismissed all the assistants he considered incompetent and completed the painting of the 65-meter ceiling himself, spending endless hours lying on his back and jealously guarding his work until it was completed on October 31, 1512.

The artistic work of Michelangelo can be briefly described as follows. This is a transcendent example of the high art of the Renaissance, which contains Christian symbols, prophecies and humanistic principles, absorbed by the master during his youth. The bright vignettes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel create a kaleidoscope effect. The most iconic image is the Creation of Adam, depicting God touching a person with his finger. The Roman artist Raphael apparently changed his style after seeing this work.

Michelangelo, whose biography and work forever remained associated with sculpture and drawing, due to physical exertion during the painting of the chapel, was forced to turn his attention to architecture.

The master continued to work on the tomb of Julius II over the next few decades. He also designed the Laurenzin Library, located opposite the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence, which was to house the library of the Medici house. These buildings are considered a turning point in the history of architecture. But the crowning glory of Michelangelo in this area was the work of the main in 1546.

Conflict nature

Michelangelo presented a floating Last Judgment on the far wall of the Sistine Chapel in 1541. Voices of protest were immediately heard - nude figures were inappropriate for such a holy place, calls were made to destroy the largest fresco of the Italian Renaissance. The artist responded by introducing new images into the composition: his main critic in the form of the devil and himself as a skinned St. Bartholomew.

Despite the connections and patronage of the wealthy and influential people of Italy, which provided the brilliant mind and all-round talent of Michelangelo, the life and work of the master were full of ill-wishers. He was cocky and quick-tempered, which often led to quarrels, including with his customers. This not only brought him trouble, but also created a feeling of dissatisfaction in him - the artist constantly strived for perfection and could not compromise.

Sometimes he had bouts of melancholy, which left a mark in many of his literary works. Michelangelo wrote that he was in great sorrow and labor, that he had no friends and did not need them, and that he did not have enough time to eat enough, but these inconveniences bring him joy.

In his youth, Michelangelo teased a fellow student and got hit in the nose, which disfigured him for life. Over the years, he experienced growing fatigue from his work, in one of the poems he described the enormous physical effort that he had to make to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Political strife in his beloved Florence also tormented him, but his most notable foe was the Florentine artist Leonardo da Vinci, who was 20 years older than him.

Literary works and personal life

Michelangelo, whose work was expressed in his sculptures, paintings and architecture, in his mature years took up poetry.

Never having married, Buonarroti was devoted to a pious and noble widow named Vittoria Colonna - the addressee of more than 300 of his poems and sonnets. Their friendship provided great support to Michelangelo until Colonna's death in 1547. In 1532, the master became close to the young nobleman Tommaso de' Cavalieri. Historians are still arguing about whether their relationship was homosexual in nature or whether he experienced paternal feelings.

Death and legacy

After a short illness, on February 18, 1564 - just a few weeks before his 89th birthday - Michelangelo died at his home in Rome. The nephew moved the body to Florence, where he was revered as "the father and master of all arts", and buried him in the Basilica di Santa Croce - where the sculptor himself bequeathed.

Unlike many artists, Michelangelo's work brought him fame and fortune during his lifetime. He was also fortunate to see the publication of two of his biographies by Giorgio Vasari and Ascanio Condivi. The appreciation of Buonarroti's craftsmanship has a long history, and his name has become synonymous with the Italian Renaissance.

Michelangelo: features of creativity

In contrast to the great fame of the artist's works, their visual impact on later art is relatively limited. This cannot be explained by the reluctance to copy the works of Michelangelo simply because of his fame, since Raphael, who was equal in talent, was imitated much more often. It is possible that a certain, almost cosmic scale type of expression by Buonarroti imposed restrictions. There are only a few examples of almost complete copying. The most talented artist was Daniele da Volterra. But nevertheless, in certain aspects, creativity in the art of Michelangelo found a continuation. In the 17th century he was considered the best in anatomical drawing, but was less praised for the broader elements of his work. The Mannerists used his spatial contraction and the writhing poses of his Victory sculpture. 19th century master Auguste Rodin applied the effect of unfinished marble blocks. Some masters of the XVII century. Baroque style copied it, but in such a way as to exclude literal resemblance. In addition, Gian and Peter Paul Rubens best showed how to use the work of Michelangelo Buonarroti for future generations of sculptors and painters.

Creativity and ideas Michelangelo inspire and fascinate many people.

Michelangelo's work briefly

Michelangelo in his art he reflected all the ideals of the era: from heroic pathos to the crisis state of the humanistic worldview. Even in his early works, the main features and ideas of his work were determined - plastic power, dramatic images, inner tension, monumentality and admiration for human beauty.

The work of Michelangelo Buonarroti can be divided into 2 periods - Roman and Florentine:

• Roman period

In Rome, Michelangelo created the Bacchus statue, paying tribute to antiquity. At that time, the Gothic scheme dominated the sculptural field. But the artist managed to introduce new ideas into it - the persuasiveness and brightness of life images, the humanistic deep content. Pope Julius II in 1505 entrusted him with the design of his own tomb. He made many sketches and it was completed as early as 1545. Especially for her, Buonarotti created a large number of sculptures.

The statue of Moses deserves special attention, expressing titanic strength, mighty will and temperament. In the cycle of painting of the Roman period, the painting of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo of 1508-1512 deserves special attention. This grandiose creation includes scenes from the biblical book of Genesis, compositions of the figures of the sibyls and prophets, images of Christ and his ancestors. His frescoes are full of clear and plastic lines, intense expressiveness, colorful range, exquisite colors. He spent the last 30 years of his life in Rome.

In 1536-1541, Buonarotti created the Last Judgment fresco, depicting the tragic power of images. Ideas of the futility of human efforts, painful hopelessness in the search for truth are reflected in the frescoes of the Paolina Chapel. The latest creations of the artist are full of plasticity, internal dynamism, tension of the masses. Until the end of his life, he was engaged in the design of the Capitol ensemble.

• Florentine period

In Florence, Buonarotti performed a grandiose work - the statue of "David" (1501-1504). It embodied the ideas of heroic impulse and civic prowess. He also painted the Palazzo Vecchio (1504 - 1506), in which he expressed the desire and readiness of the citizens of Florence to defend the republic. In the period 1516 - 1534, the artist worked on a project for the facade of the church of San Lorenzo, the architectural and sculptural ensemble of the Medici tomb. All the works of Michelangelo Buonarroti of the Florentine period are full of deep pessimism, heavy reflection, aimless movement. His statues are devoid of portrait features and depict the fluidity of time.

Michelangelo- an outstanding Italian sculptor, architect, artist, thinker, poet, one of the brightest figures of the Renaissance, whose multifaceted work influenced the art of not only this historical period, but also the development of the entire world culture.

On March 6, 1475, a boy was born in the family of a city councilor, a poor Florentine nobleman, who lived in the small town of Caprese (Tuscany), whose creations will be elevated to the rank of masterpieces, the best achievements of Renaissance art during the life of their author. Lodovico Buonarroti said that higher powers inspired him to name his son Michelangelo. Despite the nobility, which gave reason to be among the urban elite, the family was not prosperous. Therefore, when the mother died, the father of many children had to give 6-year-old Michelangelo to be raised by his nurse in the village. Before reading and writing, the boy learned to work with clay and a chisel.

Seeing his son's pronounced inclinations, in 1488 Lodovico gave him as an apprenticeship to the artist Domenico Ghirlandaio, in whose studio Michelangelo spent a year. Then he becomes a student of the famous sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni, whose school was patronized by Lorenzo de Medici, who at that time was the de facto ruler of Florence. After some time, he himself notices a talented teenager and invites him to the palace, introduces him to the palace collections. At the court of the patron, Michelangelo is from 1490 until his death in 1492, after which he leaves for home.

In June 1496, Michelangelo arrives in Rome: there, having bought a sculpture he likes, he is summoned by Cardinal Rafael Riario. Since that time, the biography of the great artist has been associated with frequent moves from Florence to Rome and back. Early creations already reveal features that will distinguish the creative manner of Michelangelo: admiration for the beauty of the human body, plastic power, monumentality, dramatic artistic images.

During the years 1501-1504, returning in 1501 to Florence, he worked on the famous statue of David, which a respectable commission decided to install in the main city square. Since 1505, Michelangelo is back in Rome, where he is called by Pope Julius II to work on a grandiose project - the creation of his magnificent tombstone, which, according to their joint plan, should have surrounded many statues. Work on it was carried out intermittently and was completed only in 1545. In 1508, he fulfills another request of Julius II - he starts painting the frescoes of the vault in the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican and finishes this grandiose painting, working intermittently, in 1512.

Period from 1515 to 1520 became one of the most difficult in the biography of Michelangelo, passed under the sign of the collapse of plans, throwing "between two fires" - the service of Pope Leo X and the heirs of Julius II. In 1534 he finally moved to Rome. From the 20s. the artist's attitude becomes more pessimistic, painted in tragic tones. An illustration of the mood was the huge composition "The Last Judgment" - again in the Sistine Chapel, on the altar wall; Michelangelo worked on it in 1536-1541. After the death of the architect Antonio da Sangallo in 1546, he held the position of chief architect of the Cathedral of St.. Peter. The largest work of this period, work on which lasted from the end of the 40s. to 1555, there was a sculptural group "Pieta". Over the last 30 years of the artist's life, the emphasis in his work gradually shifted to architecture and poetry. Deep, filled with tragedy, dedicated to the eternal themes of love, loneliness, happiness, madrigals, sonnets and other poetic compositions were highly appreciated by contemporaries. The first publication of Michelangelo's poetry was posthumous (1623).

On February 18, 1564, the great representative of the Renaissance died. His body was transported from Rome to Florence and buried in the church of Santa Croce with great honors.

Biography from Wikipedia

Michelangelo Buonarroti, full name Michelangelo di Lodovico di Leonardo di Buonarroti Simoni(Italian Michelangelo di Lodovico di Leonardo di Buonarroti Simoni; March 6, 1475, Caprese - February 18, 1564, Rome) - Italian sculptor, artist, architect, poet, thinker. One of the greatest masters of the Renaissance and early Baroque. His works were considered the highest achievements of Renaissance art during the lifetime of the master himself. Michelangelo lived for almost 89 years, an entire era, from the High Renaissance to the origins of the Counter-Reformation. During this period, thirteen Popes were replaced - he carried out orders for nine of them. Many documents about his life and work have been preserved - testimonies of contemporaries, letters from Michelangelo himself, contracts, his personal and professional records. Michelangelo was also the first representative of Western European art, whose biography was printed during his lifetime.

Among his most famous sculptural works are "David", "Bacchus", "Pieta", the statues of Moses, Leah and Rachel for the tomb of Pope Julius II. Giorgio Vasari, the first official biographer of Michelangelo, wrote that "David" "has taken away the glory of all statues, modern and ancient, Greek and Roman." One of the most monumental works of the artist is the ceiling frescoes of the Sistine Chapel, about which Goethe wrote that: "Without seeing the Sistine Chapel, it is difficult to get a visual idea of ​​what one person can do." Among his architectural accomplishments are the design of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica, the stairs of the Laurenzian Library, Piazza Campidoglio and others. Researchers believe that the art of Michelangelo begins and ends with the image of the human body.

life and creation

Childhood

Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475 in the Tuscan town of Caprese, north of Arezzo, in the family of an impoverished Florentine nobleman Lodovico Buonarroti (Italian: Lodovico (Ludovico) di Leonardo Buonarroti Simoni) (1444-1534), who at that time was the 169th Podesta. For generations, members of the Buonarroti-Simoni family were the small bankers of Florence, but Lodovico was unable to maintain the financial condition of the bank, so he occasionally held public office. It is known that Lodovico was proud of his aristocratic origin, because the Buonarroti-Simoni family claimed blood relationship with the Margraves Matilda of Canos, although there was not enough documentary evidence to confirm this. Ascanio Condivi claimed that Michelangelo himself believed in this, recalling the aristocratic origin of the family in his letters to his nephew Leonardo. William Wallace wrote:

“Before Michelangelo, very few artists claimed such an origin. The artists did not have not only coats of arms, but also real names. They were named after their father, profession or city, and among them such famous contemporaries of Michelangelo as Leonardo da Vinci and Giorgione"

According to Lodovico's record, which is kept in the Casa Buonarroti Museum (Florence), Michelangelo was born "(...) on a Monday morning, at 4 or 5:00 before dawn." This register also states that the christening took place on 8 March at the Church of San Giovanni di Caprese and lists the godparents:

About his mother, Francesca di Neri di Miniato del Siena (Italian Francesca di Neri del Miniato di Siena), who married early and died of exhaustion from frequent pregnancies in the year of Michelangelo's sixth birthday, the latter never mentions in his voluminous correspondence with his father and brothers . Lodovico Buonarroti was not rich, and the income from his small estate in the countryside was barely enough to support many children. In this regard, he was forced to give Michelangelo to the nurse, the wife of "scarpelino" from the same village, called Settignano. There, raised by the Topolino couple, the boy learned to knead clay and use a chisel before he could read and write. In any case, Michelangelo himself later said to his friend and biographer Giorgio Vasari:

“If there is anything good in my talent, it is from the fact that I was born in the rarefied air of your Aretine land, and the chisels and the hammer with which I make my statues, I extracted from the milk of my nurse.”

"Count Kanossky"
(Drawing by Michelangelo)

Michelangelo was the second son of Lodovico. Fritz Erpeli gives the year of birth of his brothers Lionardo (Italian Lionardo) - 1473, Buonarroto (Italian Buonarroto) - 1477, Giovansimone (Italian Giovansimone) - 1479 and Gismondo (Italian Gismondo) - 1481. In the same year, his mother died, and in 1485, four years after her death, Lodovico married a second time. Michelangelo's stepmother was Lucrezia Ubaldini. Soon Michelangelo was sent to the school of Francesco Galatea da Urbino (Italian Francesco Galatea da Urbino) in Florence, where the young man did not show much inclination to study and preferred to communicate with artists and redraw church icons and frescoes.

Youth. First works

In 1488, the father resigned himself to his son's inclinations and placed him as an apprentice in the workshop of the artist Domenico Ghirlandaio. Here Michelangelo got the opportunity to get acquainted with the basic materials and techniques, his pencil copies of the works of such Florentine artists as Giotto and Masaccio belong to the same period, already in these copies the sculptural vision of forms characteristic of Michelangelo appeared. His painting “The Torment of St. Anthony” (copy of an engraving by Martin Schongauer) belongs to the same period.

He worked there for one year. A year later, Michelangelo moved to the school of the sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni, which existed under the patronage of Lorenzo de' Medici, the actual owner of Florence. The Medici recognize Michelangelo's talent and patronize him. From about 1490 to 1492, Michelangelo was at the Medici court. Here he met the philosophers of the Platonic Academy (Marsilio Ficino, Angelo Poliziano, Pico della Mirandola and others). He was also friends with Giovanni (second son of Lorenzo, future Pope Leo X) and Giulio Medici (illegitimate son of Giuliano Medici, future Pope Clement VII). Perhaps at this time were created " Madonna at the stairs" and " Battle of the centaurs". It is known that at this time Pietro Torrigiano, who was also a student of Bertoldo, quarreled with Michelangelo and broke the boy's nose with a blow to the face. After the death of the Medici in 1492, Michelangelo returned home.

In the years 1494-1495 Michelangelo lives in Bologna, creates sculptures for the Arch of St. Dominic. In 1495 he returned to Florence, where the Dominican preacher Girolamo Savonarola rules, and creates sculptures " Saint Johannes" and " Sleeping Cupid". In 1496, Cardinal Rafael Riario buys Michelangelo's marble Cupid and invites the artist to work in Rome, where Michelangelo arrives on June 25. In 1496-1501 he creates " bacchus" and " Roman Pieta».

In 1501 Michelangelo returned to Florence. Commissioned works: sculptures for " piccolomini altarpiece" and " David". In 1503, work was completed on order: “ Twelve Apostles", the beginning of work on" Saint Matthew» for the Florentine Cathedral. Approximately in 1503-1505, the creation of " Madonna Doni», « Madonna Taddei», « Madonna Pitti" and " Brugger Madonna". In 1504, work on " David»; Michelangelo receives an order to create " Battles of Kashin».

In 1505 the sculptor was summoned by Pope Julius II to Rome; he ordered a tomb for him. Followed by an eight-month stay in Carrara, the choice of marble necessary for work. In 1505-1545, work was carried out (with interruptions) on the tomb, for which sculptures were created " Moses», « Bound Slave», « Dying slave», « Leah».

In April 1506 - again returning to Florence, in November, reconciliation with Julius II in Bologna follows. Michelangelo receives an order for a bronze statue of Julius II, on which he works in 1507 (later destroyed).

In February 1508, Michelangelo returned to Florence again. In May, at the request of Julius II, he travels to Rome to paint the ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel; he works on them until October 1512.

Julius II dies in 1513. Giovanni Medici becomes Pope Leo X. Michelangelo concludes a new contract to work on the tomb of Julius II. In 1514, the sculptor receives an order for " Christ with a cross"and the chapel of Pope Leo X in Engelsburg.

In July 1514, Michelangelo returned to Florence again. He receives an order to create the facade of the Medici Church of San Lorenzo in Florence, and he signs a third contract for the creation of the tomb of Julius II.

In the years 1516-1519, numerous trips took place for marble for the facade of San Lorenzo in Carrara and Pietrasanta.

In 1520-1534, the sculptor worked on the architectural and sculptural complex of the Medici Chapel in Florence, and also designed and built the Laurencin Library.

In 1546, the artist was entrusted with the most significant architectural orders in his life. For Pope Paul III, he completed the Palazzo Farnese (the third floor of the courtyard facade and cornice) and designed for him a new decoration of the Capitol, the material embodiment of which continued, however, for quite a long time. But, of course, the most important order that prevented him from returning to his native Florence until his death was for Michelangelo his appointment as the chief architect of St. Peter's Cathedral. Convinced of such confidence in him and faith in him on the part of the pope, Michelangelo, in order to show his good will, wished that the decree declared that he served on the building out of love for God and without any remuneration.

Death and burial

A few days before Michelangelo's death, his nephew, Leonardo, arrived in Rome, to whom on February 15, at the request of Michelangelo, Federico Donati wrote a letter.

Michelangelo died on February 18, 1564 in Rome, not long before his 89th birthday. His death was witnessed by Tommaso Cavalieri, Daniele da Volterra, Diomede Leone, doctors Federico Donati and Gerardo Fidelissimi, and servant Antonio Franzese. Before his death, he dictated a testament with all his characteristic laconicism: "I give my soul to God, my body to the earth, my property to my relatives."

Pope Pius IV was going to bury Michelangelo in Rome by building a tomb for him in St. Peter's Basilica. On February 20, 1564, the body of Michelangelo was temporarily laid to rest in the Basilica of Santi Apostoli.

In early March, the body of the sculptor was secretly transported to Florence and solemnly buried on July 14, 1564 in the Franciscan church of Santa Croce, not far from the tomb of Machiavelli.

Artworks

The genius of Michelangelo left an imprint not only on the art of the Renaissance, but also on all further world culture. His activities are mainly associated with two Italian cities - Florence and Rome. By the nature of his talent, he was primarily a sculptor. This is also felt in the master's paintings, unusually rich in plasticity of movements, complex poses, distinct and powerful modeling of volumes. In Florence, Michelangelo created an immortal example of the High Renaissance - the statue "David" (1501-1504), which became for many centuries the standard image of the human body, in Rome - the sculptural composition "Pieta" (1498-1499), one of the first incarnations of the figure of a dead man in plastic. However, the artist was able to realize his most grandiose plans precisely in painting, where he acted as a true innovator of color and form.

By order of Pope Julius II, he painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (1508-1512), representing the biblical story from the creation of the world to the flood and including more than 300 figures. In 1534-1541, in the same Sistine Chapel for Pope Paul III, he performed the grandiose, dramatic fresco The Last Judgment. The architectural works of Michelangelo amaze with their beauty and grandeur - the ensemble of Capitol Square and the dome of the Vatican Cathedral in Rome.

The arts have reached such perfection in him that you will not find either among the ancients or the new people for many, many years. His imagination was so and so perfect, and the things presented to him in the idea were such that it was impossible to carry out plans so great and amazing with his hands, and often he abandoned his creations, moreover, many destroyed; so, it is known that shortly before his death he burned a large number of drawings, sketches and cardboards created by his own hand, so that no one could see the labors he overcame, and in what ways he tested his genius in order to show it only perfect.

Giorgio Vasari. "Lives of the most famous painters, sculptors and architects." T. V. M., 1971.

Notable works

• Madonna at the stairs. Marble. OK. 1491. Florence, Buonarroti Museum.
• Battle of the centaurs. Marble. OK. 1492. Florence, Buonarroti Museum.
• Pieta. Marble. 1498-1499. Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica.
• Madonna and Child. Marble. OK. 1501. Bruges, Notre Dame church.
• David. Marble. 1501-1504. Florence, Academy of Fine Arts.
• Madonna Taddei. Marble. OK. 1502-1504. London, Royal Academy of Arts.
• Madonna Doni. 1503-1504. Florence, Uffizi Gallery.
• Madonna Pitti. OK. 1504-1505. Florence, Bargello National Museum.
• Apostle Matthew. Marble. 1506. Florence, Academy of Fine Arts.
• Painting on the vault of the Sistine Chapel. 1508-1512. Vatican.
  • Creation of Adam
• Dying slave. Marble. OK. 1513. Paris, Louvre.
• Moses. OK. 1515. Rome, church of San Pietro in Vincoli.
• Atlant. Marble. Between 1519, ca. 1530-1534. Florence, Academy of Fine Arts.
• Medici Chapel 1520-1534.
• Madonna. Florence, Medici Chapel. Marble. 1521-1534.
• Laurentian Library. 1524-1534, 1549-1559. Florence.
• Tomb of Duke Lorenzo. Medici Chapel. 1524-1531. Florence, Cathedral of San Lorenzo.
• Tomb of Duke Giuliano. Medici Chapel. 1526-1533. Florence, Cathedral of San Lorenzo.
• Crouching boy. Marble. 1530-1534. Russia, St. Petersburg, State Hermitage.
• Brutus. Marble. After 1539. Florence, Bargello National Museum.
• Terrible Judgment. The Sistine Chapel. 1535-1541. Vatican.
• Tomb of Julius II. 1542-1545. Rome, Church of San Pietro in Vincoli.
• Pieta (Laying in the Coffin) of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. Marble. OK. 1547-1555. Florence, Opera del Duomo Museum.

In 2007, the last work of Michelangelo was found in the archives of the Vatican - a sketch of one of the details of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica. The red chalk drawing is "a detail of one of the radial columns that make up the drum of the dome of St. Peter's in Rome." It is believed that this is the last work of the famous artist, completed shortly before his death in 1564.

This is not the first time Michelangelo's work has been found in archives and museums. So, in 2002, in the vaults of the National Design Museum in New York, among the works of unknown authors of the Renaissance, another drawing was found: on a sheet of paper measuring 45 × 25 cm, the artist depicted a menorah - a candlestick for seven candles. In early 2015, it became known about the discovery of the first and probably the only bronze sculpture of Michelangelo that has survived to this day - a composition of two panther riders.

Poetic creativity

The poetry of Michelangelo is considered one of the brightest examples of the Renaissance. About 300 poems by Michelangelo have survived to this day. The main themes are the chanting of a person, the bitterness of disappointment and the artist's loneliness. Favorite poetic forms are madrigal and sonnet. According to R. Rolland, Michelangelo began to write poetry as a child, however, there are not so many of them left, because in 1518, he burned most of his early poems, and destroyed another part later, before his death.

Some of his poems were published in the works of Benedetto Varchi (Italian: Benedetto Varchi), Donato Giannotto (Italian: Donato Giannotti), Giorgio Vasari and others. Luigi Ricci and Giannotto suggested that he select the best poems for publication. In 1545, Giannotto undertook the preparation of the first collection of Michelangelo, however, things did not go any further - Luigi died in 1546, and Vittoria died in 1547. Michelangelo decided to abandon this idea, considering it vanity.

Vittoria and Michelangelo at Moses, 19th century painting

Thus, during his lifetime, the collection of his poems was not published, and the first collection was published only in 1623 by his nephew Michelangelo Buonarroti (the younger) under the title "Poems of Michelangelo collected by his nephew" in the Florentine publishing house Giuntine (Italian Giuntine). This edition was incomplete and contained certain inaccuracies. In 1863, Cesare Guasti (Italian: Chesare Guasti) published the first accurate edition of the artist's poems, which, however, was not chronological. "(Berlin). The edition of Enzo Noe Girard (Bari, 1960) Italian. Enzo Noe Girardi) consisted of three parts, and was much more perfect than Frey's edition in the accuracy of the text and was distinguished by a better chronology of the arrangement of poems, although not entirely indisputable.

The study of the poetic work of Michelangelo was carried out, in particular, by the German writer Wilhelm Lang, who defended a dissertation on this topic, published in 1861.

Use in music

Some of his poems were set to music during his lifetime. Among the most famous contemporary composers of Michelangelo are Jacob Arcadelt ("Deh dimm" Amor se l "alma" and "Io dico che fra voi"), Bartolomeo Tromboncino, Constanta Festa (the lost madrigal to Michelangelo's poem), Jean where Cons (also - council).

Also, composers such as Richard Strauss wrote music to his words (a cycle of five songs - the first to the words of Michelangelo, the rest - to Adolf von Shack, 1886), Hugo Wolf (the vocal cycle "Songs of Michelangelo" 1897) and Benjamin Britten (song cycle " Seven sonnets by Michelangelo, 1940).

On July 31, 1974, Dmitri Shostakovich wrote a suite for bass and piano (opus 145). The suite is based on eight sonnets and three poems by the artist (translated by Abram Efros).

In 2006 Sir Peter Maxwell Davies completed Tondo di Michelangelo (for baritone and piano). The work includes eight sonnets by Michelangelo. The premiere took place on October 18, 2007.

In 2010 the Austrian composer Matthew Dewey wrote "Il tempo passa: music to Michelangelo" (for baritone, viola and piano). It uses a modern translation of Michelangelo's poems into English. The world premiere of the work took place on January 16, 2011.

Appearance

There are several portraits of Michelangelo. Among them are Sebastiano del Piombo (c. 1520), Giuliano Bugiardini, Jacopino del Conte (1544-1545, Uffizi Gallery), Marcello Venusti (Museum in the Capitol), Francisco d "Olanda (1538-1539), Giulio Bonasone (1546) etc. Also, his image was in the biography of Condivi, which was published in 1553, and in 1561 Leone Leoni minted a coin with his image.

Describing the appearance of Michelangelo, Romain Rolland chose the portraits of Conte and d "Holland as a basis:

Bust of Michelangelo
(Daniele da Volterra, 1564)

“Michelangelo was of medium height, broad in the shoulders and muscular (...). His head was round, his forehead was square, wrinkled, with strongly pronounced brow ridges. Black, rather sparse hair, slightly curly. Small light brown eyes, the color of which was constantly changing, dotted with yellow and blue specks (...). Wide, straight nose with a slight hump (...). Thinly defined lips, the lower lip protrudes slightly. Thin sideburns, and a forked sparse beard of a faun (...) a high-cheeked face with sunken cheeks.

However, in the cinema they preferred to portray him as more attractive than he really was.

Michelangelo did not leave behind a single documented self-portrait, however, a number of his works are considered by researchers to be possible images of the artist. Among them - "Saint Proclus of Bologna", the head of Holofernes in the fresco "Judith and Holofernes" on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, the loser in the sculptural group "Spirit of Victory", the face on the skin of St. Bartholomew (the fresco "Last Judgment"), St. Nicodemus in " Drink II.

It is also believed that he is depicted on Raphael's fresco "The School of Athens", although this statement is not unambiguous. After Michelangelo's death, Daniele da Volterra made the sculptor's death mask and bust.

Spiritual quest and personal life

In 1536, Vittoria Colonna, Marchioness of Pescara, came to Rome, where this 47-year-old widowed poetess earned the deep friendship of the 61-year-old Michelangelo. Vittoria became the only woman whose name is firmly associated with Michelangelo. Researcher Norton argued that “his poems to her ... are sometimes difficult to distinguish from the sonnets to the young man Tommaso Cavalieri, moreover, it is known that Michelangelo himself sometimes replaced the address “signor” with “signora” before letting his poems go to the people. In the future, his poems were censored by a great-nephew before publication.

Her departure for Orvieto and Viterbo in 1541, due to the rebellion of her brother Ascanio Colonna against Paul III, did not cause a change in her relationship with the artist, and they continued to visit each other and correspond as before. She returned to Rome in 1544.

Sonnet No. 60

And the highest genius will not add
One thought to those that marble itself
Conceals in abundance - and only this to us
The hand, obedient to reason, will reveal.

Am I waiting for joy, is anxiety pressing my heart,
The wisest, kindest donna, - to you
I owe everything to me, and heavy is my shame,
That my gift does not glorify you as it should.

Not the power of Love, not your beauty,
Or coldness, or anger, or oppression of contempt
In my misfortune they bear guilt, -
Then, that death is merged with mercy
In your heart - but my pathetic genius
Extract, loving, capable of death alone.

Michelangelo

Biographers of the famous artist noted that "the correspondence of these two remarkable people is not only of high biographical interest, but is also an excellent monument of the historical era and a rare example of a lively exchange of thoughts full of intelligence, subtle observation and irony."

The researchers wrote about the sonnets dedicated to Michelangelo Vittoria: “The deliberate, forced Platonism of their relationship aggravated and brought to crystallization the love-philosophical warehouse of Michelangelo’s poetry, which largely reflected the views and poetry of the Marquise herself, who played the role of Michelangelo’s spiritual leader during the 1530s . Their poetic "correspondence" aroused the attention of contemporaries; perhaps the most famous was sonnet 60, which became the subject of a special interpretation.

Recordings of conversations between Vittoria and Michelangelo, heavily processed, have been preserved in the posthumously published notes of the Portuguese artist Francesco d'Hollande.

Grade

Michelangelo during his lifetime was considered the greatest master. Now he is considered one of the greatest masters in the history of mankind. A significant number of his sculptures, paintings and works of architecture are the most famous in the world. His most famous work is the statue of David.

To the cinema

• "Agony and Ecstasy" / The Agony and the Ecstasy - dir. Carol Reid, (US-UK, 1965)
• Performance by G. Mackevicius "Overcoming"
• Documentary "Michelangelo Superstar"

Michelangelo Buonarroti(1475-1564) is the third great genius of the Italian Renaissance. In terms of personality, he approaches Leonardo. He was a sculptor, painter, architect and poet. The last thirty years of his work fall on the Late Renaissance. During this period, anxiety and anxiety, a premonition of future troubles and upheavals appear in his works.

Among his first creations, the statue “Swung Boy” draws attention, which echoes the “Disco Thrower” of the ancient sculptor Myron. In it, the master manages to vividly express the movement and passion of a young being.

Two works - the Bacchus statue and the Pieta group - created at the end of the 15th century, brought Michelangelo wide fame and fame. In the first, he was able to amazingly subtly convey the state of light intoxication, unstable balance. The Pieta group depicts the dead body of Christ, lying on the lap of the Madonna, mournfully leaning over him. Both figures are merged into a single whole. The impeccable composition makes them surprisingly truthful and authentic. Breaking away from tradition. Michelangelo portrays the Madonna as young and beautiful. The contrast of her youth with the lifeless body of Christ further enhances the tragedy of the situation.

One of the greatest achievements of Michelangelo was statue of David which he ventured to carve out of an unused and already spoiled block of marble lying around. The sculpture is very high - 5.5 m. However, this feature remains almost invisible. Ideal proportions, perfect plasticity, rare harmony of forms make it surprisingly natural, light and beautiful. The statue is filled with inner life, energy and strength. It is a hymn to human masculinity, beauty, grace and grace.

Among the highest achievements of Michelangelo are also works. created for the tomb of Pope Julius II - "Moses", "Shackled Slave", "Dying Slave", "Awakening Slave", "Crouching Boy". The sculptor worked on this tomb with a break for about 40 years, but never brought it to completion. However, that. that the sculptor managed to create are considered the greatest masterpieces of world art. According to experts, in these works Michelangelo managed to achieve the highest perfection, ideal unity and correspondence between the inner meaning and the outer form.

One of the significant creations of Michelangelo is the Medici Chapel, which he added to the church of San Lorenzo in Florence and decorated with sculptural tombstones. The two tombs of the Dukes Lorenzo and Giuliano Medici are sarcophagi with sloping lids, on which are located two figures - "Morning" and "Evening", "Day" and "Night". All figures look bleak, they express anxiety and a gloomy mood. Michelangelo himself experienced such feelings, since his Florence was captured by the Spaniards. As for the figures of the dukes themselves, when depicting them, Michelangelo did not strive for portrait resemblance. He presented them as generalized images of two types of people: the courageous and energetic Giuliano and the melancholic and thoughtful Lorenzo.

Of Michelangelo's last sculptural works, the Entombment group deserves attention, which the artist intended for his tomb. Her fate was tragic: Michelangelo smashed her. However, it was restored by one of his students.

In addition to sculptures, Michelangelo created beautiful works painting. The most significant of them are Frescoes in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.

He took them twice. First, by order of Pope Julius II, he painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, spending four years (1508-1512) on it and doing fantastically difficult and tremendous work. He had to cover over 600 square meters with frescoes. On the huge surfaces of the plafond, Michelangelo depicted Old Testament scenes - from the Creation of the world to the Flood, as well as scenes from everyday life - a mother playing with children, an old man immersed in deep thought, a young man reading, etc.

For the second time (1535-1541), Michelangelo creates the Last Judgment fresco, placing it on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. In the center of the composition, in a halo of light, is the figure of Christ, who raised his right hand in a formidable gesture. Around it are many naked human figures. Everything depicted on the canvas is given in a circular motion, which begins at the bottom.

on the left side, where the dead are depicted rising from the graves. Above them are the upwardly striving souls, and above them are the righteous. The topmost part of the fresco is occupied by angels. At the bottom of the right side is a boat with Charon, who drives sinners to hell. The biblical meaning of the Last Judgment is expressed vividly and impressively.

In the last years of his life, Michelangelo engaged in architecture. He completes the construction of St. Peter, making changes to Bramante's original design.

Who is Michelangelo, one way or another, everyone knows. The Sistine Chapel, David, Pieta - this is what this Renaissance genius is strongly associated with. Meanwhile, dig a little deeper, and the majority is unlikely to be able to clearly answer what else the wayward Italian was remembered for by the world. Expanding the boundaries of knowledge.

Michelangelo made money by fakes

It is known that Michelangelo began with sculptural falsifications, which brought him a lot of money. The artist bought marble in huge quantities, but no one saw the results of his work (it is logical that the authorship had to be hidden). The most notorious of his forgeries may be the Laocoön and his Sons sculpture, which is now attributed to three Rhodian sculptors. The suggestion that this work may be a fake of Michelangelo was made in 2005 by researcher Lynn Catterson, who refers to the fact that Michelangelo was among the first to be at the discovery site and was one of those who identified the sculpture.

Michelangelo studied the dead

Michelangelo is known as an excellent sculptor who was able to recreate the human body in marble in great detail. Such painstaking work required an impeccable knowledge of anatomy, meanwhile, at the beginning of his career, Michelangelo had no idea about how the human body is worth. To fill in the missing knowledge, Michelangelo spent a lot of time in the monastery mortuary, where he examined dead people, trying to understand all the subtleties of the human body.

Michelangelo hated painting

They say that Michelangelo sincerely disliked painting, which, in his opinion, was significantly inferior to sculpture. He called painting landscapes and still lifes a waste of time, considering them "useless pictures for ladies."

Michelangelo's teacher broke his nose out of jealousy

As a teenager, Michelangelo was sent to study at the school of the sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni, which existed under the patronage of Lorenzo de' Medici. The young talent showed great zeal and diligence in his studies and quickly achieved not only success in the school field, but also won the patronage of the Medici. Incredible successes, attention from influential people and, apparently, a sharp tongue led to the fact that Michelangelo made many enemies at school, including among teachers. So, according to the work of Giorgio Vasari, the Italian Renaissance sculptor and one of Michelangelo's teachers, Pietro Torrigiano, out of envy of his student's talent, broke his nose.

Michelangelo was seriously ill

For the last 15 years of his life, Michelangelo suffered from osteoarthritis, a disease that causes joint deformity and pain in the limbs. Work helped him not to completely lose his ability to work. It is believed that the first symptoms appeared during the work on the Florentine Pieta.

Also, many researchers of the work and life of the great sculptor claim that Michelangelo suffered from depression and dizziness, which could appear as a result of working with dyes and solvents, which caused poisoning of the body and all further accompanying symptoms.

Michelangelo's secret self-portraits

Michelangelo rarely signed his work and never left behind a formal self-portrait. However, he still managed to capture his face in some pictures and sculptures. The most famous of these secret self-portraits is part of the Last Judgment fresco, which you can find in the Sistine Chapel. It depicts Saint Bartholomew holding a flayed piece of skin representing the face of none other than Michelangelo.

Michelangelo was a poet

We know Michelangelo as a sculptor and artist, and he was also an accomplished poet. In his portfolio you can find hundreds of madrigals and sonnets that were not published during his lifetime. However, despite the fact that contemporaries could not appreciate the poetic talent of Michelangelo, many years later his work found its listener, so in Rome in the 16th century the poetry of the sculptor was extremely popular, especially among singers who re-arranged poems about mental wounds and physical disabilities. to music.

Major works of Michelangelo

There are few works of art in the world that could cause as much admiration as these works of the great Italian master. We offer you to look at some of the most famous works of Michelangelo and feel their greatness.