Michelangelo A Master Of Art English Literature Essay

He was born Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni on 6th March 1475 in Caprese near Arrezo, Italy. In addition, he was a painter, architect, poet, sculptor and engineer, a jack of all trades. He remains the most famous High Renaissance movement man of the 16th Century. Michelangelo interest in art began when he was a small boy and against his fathers wish. At around thirteen he had made his first drawing; a male figure. Information about his training in sculptor is rare but it is a talent he was later to portray. Painting later took up his preoccupation (Crispino 8-10)

At around 1488, Buonarroti joined Domenico workshop and stayed for three years learning about drawing mainly by copying works done by other famous local and foreign painters of that time. He came in limelight in 1489 when he met with Lorenzo De Medici in the garden of San Marco. Michelangelo discovered his real vocation under the protection of Lorenzo the Magnificent.

His earliest work is the one which the Magnificent once criticized as a young sculptor. Upon modification, Michelangelo had proved to be a genius and was to lead the rest of his life as such. We are now going to explore some of his famous work which made him stand out from the rest. These works are the most beautiful and amazing up to this day, in sculpture, painting and architecture. In history, none other has been able to accomplish as much as has Michelangelo in regard to excelling in more than one field of art.

Some of the most famous pieces of his work in sculpture are; the Pieta, David, Madonna and Child, and the Tomb. In painting the works that most stand out are the Sistine Chapel and The Last Judgment. Michelangelo also contributed immensely in architecture such as Plan of Façade, Laurentian Library and St Peters Basilica. Michelangelo’s main theme in his paintings and sculptures is humanity in its natural state. Michelangelo’s main work was in sculpture and he dedicated much towards it. Since his art portrayed both negative and positive attributes, he can be seen as possessing a very stable personality.

It was during his first time in Rome in 1496 where he faked an old Sleeping Cupid sculpture that later was discovered not to be original and in turn brought him to limelight. Michelangelo stay in Rome enabled him to further his desires in art. The Vatican Pieta was his first in Rome and became a basis and inspiration for others as well. The Pieta became a celebrated piece of work since it depicted Jesus held by his mother Maria on her lap after crucifixion; a theme that augured well with Vatican beliefs. For the first time they were amazed by how much a block of stone could be transformed to a beautiful object that nature itself was unable to recreate. Perhaps what really matters in art is the interpretation one deduces upon seeing a sculpture figure like the pieta. In the case of Michelangelo Pieta, such themes as passion, weakness, divinity and youthfulness are brought out perfectly.

The statue of David deriving his theme from David the King from the Bible was another very magnificent piece of work. Michelangelo was assigned to complete this piece which had for the last 40 years been unfinished. It was to be a symbol representing freedom to the people of Florentine. The Statue of David was sculptured from a block of marble and considering its massive height, over five meters, you begin to appreciate the skill Michelangelo processed. There were many controversies surrounding the completion of the Statue but all in all it was Michelangelo who finally brought it to fruition. The Statue of David can be interpreted as a show of strength. Reckoning that Michelangelo more often was comfortable in depicting nude figures, here once again he scored by displaying the most excellent form. The Statue of David has those bright fiery eyes which depict his courage just as he did when he killed Goliath.

Michelangelo was gifted in sculpture as well as in painting. Painting is another way of expression in art, and in this he excelled. The Sistine Chapel paintings have continued to baffle many even to the present day. The work which took four years is composed of many nude figures and different biblical stories which are completely amazing to see. Painted in bright colors, they present the viewer with different emotions and moods especially if one is conversant with the stories from the bible being depicted. The use of naked figure brought about a controversy and he was accused as an immoral person but the Pope defended him. Some of the original stories he was to depict in the Sistine chapel include the ancestors of Jesus, the prophets, and the 12 apostles (Chapman 56)

However, upon completion of this work, he was allowed to choose his own work and The Last Judgment was born. It illustrates the second coming of Jesus and the judgment that is to come with him; sinful souls going to hell. The fresco paintings instill fear to the viewer and in contrast to other works the figures are strong and fearfully looking. This is to be interpreted as humans ought to fear God to escape eternal damnation.

An important thing is to note the skill involved in fresco painting; the work is done on a fresh plaster and considering Michelangelo did this on a ceiling, you begin to appreciate the type of art he gave to the world. For example when he was painting the Sistine Chapel, he had a pavilion hanging up high on the ceiling where either standing or lying on his back, he carefully brought those fresco paintings into life.

Although Michelangelo claimed he was not an experienced architecture, he contributed many designs which came to be implemented later after his lifetime. The Laurentian Library demonstrated his free approach to structures in a very significant way. It was the most revolutionary interior designs in history. In St Peters alone he dedicated 18 years to see it come to fruition. His background in sculpture and painting helped him achieve what many could not. Michelangelo developed a skill to sketch different designs and add onto them as ideas came by. In these sketches he made sure to utilize all the space if his work was to be executed. For instance in St Peters, the dome and the symmetrical plans are still in use today having been perfected by him (Ackerman and Newman 70). It is important to observe that Michelangelo contribution towards architecture helped to pave way to a rebirth in ideas on architecture some of which are still utilized now. St. Peters remains as one complete piece of art in which Michelangelo was involved in the fields of sculpture, architecture and painting all in one. Further it remains up to the present day, depicting the durability of Michelangelo art over the many centuries.

There are other fields in which Michelangelo indulged in although he did not always contribute much. Some for instance are in poetry and there are a number of good poems that are associated with him and have been translated into English. We can deduce much pessimism in his poems as we establish his strengths and weaknesses. Some of these poems include the Celestial Love and the Doom of Beauty. It is like Michelangelo had something divine within him which made him stand out in so many different ways.

Michelangelo also made drawings in chalk and it shows how much he was gifted when it came to using any medium. Art was in his soul and therefore he could not choose the means to accomplish his goal as long as the end product was to be excellent.

In this work, he summarizes the sculptural innovations of his 15th-century, while bringing in the new art of the High Renaissance style of the 16th century. Michelangelo was a friend princes, kings and popes, from Lorenzo de’ Medici, Clement VIII, and Pius III, as well as cardinals, painters, and poets. He was not difficult to get along with nor easy to understand. It is in his poetry where we find him expressing his thoughts more than in the other arts. Much of his poetry deals with hardships he underwent and personal relationships.

The great Renaissance poets came to term him as a man more than mortal but a divine angel. This however does not mean he did not encounter problems in his life. There are some who saw him as hindrance to their success. That may the reason some thought he was arrogant. But his drive was mostly nature which he undertook for an enemy and this fact is seen in his works. It is like he was always trying to attack nature in its lack of perfection and only he could bring it about. Indeed such thought enhanced his life to accept all alike; he was rich but lived as poor. He believed in not doing things in excesses but to do just enough and further we note he sometimes preferred solitude when he could meditate alone.

Indeed, Michelangelo was widely awarded the highest honors because of his extraordinary accomplishments. In conclusion, Michelangelo was arguably one of the most inspired artists in the history in the Italian High Renaissance. As a sculptor, architect, painter, and poet, he has exerted a tremendous influence in Western art up to the present day. Not only did he give us new ideas about art, but he revolutionized it in whole. Prior to his embracing nudity in artwork, no other artist had the courage to venture in such a field. Fresco painting was also brought to the limelight by Michelangelo and over the years has proven effective and durable. We should therefore pay great tribute to this famous artist of the fifteenth Century for being a Master of Art.