In what country was Michelangelo born? The end of the earthly journey

When they say that Michelangelo is a genius, they not only express a judgment about his art, but also give him a historical assessment. Genius, in the minds of people of the sixteenth century, was a kind of supernatural force influencing the human soul; in the romantic era this force would be called “inspiration.”
Divine inspiration requires solitude and reflection. In the history of art, Michelangelo is the first solitary artist, waging an almost continuous struggle with the world around him, in which he feels alien and unsettled.
On Monday, March 6, 1475, in the small town of Caprese, a male child was born to the podesta (city governor) Chiusi and Caprese. In the family books of the ancient Buonarroti family in Florence there is a detailed record of this event of the happy father, sealed with his signature - di Lodovico di Lionardo di Buonarroti Simoni.
The father sent his son to the Francesco da Urbino school in Florence. The boy had to learn to inflect and conjugate Latin words from this first compiler of Latin grammar. The boy was extremely inquisitive by nature, but Latin depressed him. The teaching went from bad to worse. The distressed father attributed this to laziness and carelessness, not believing, of course, in his son’s calling. He dreamed of a brilliant career for him, dreamed of seeing his son someday in the highest civil positions.
But, in the end, the father came to terms with his son’s artistic inclinations and one day, taking up a pen, he wrote: “One thousand four hundred and eighty-eight, April 1st day, I, Lodovico, son of Lionardo di Buonarroti, place my son Michelangelo with Domenico and David Ghirlandaio for three years from this day on the following conditions: the said Michelangelo remains with his teachers these three years as a student for exercise in painting, and must, in addition, do everything that his masters order him; as a reward for his services, Domenico and David pay him the sum of 24 florins: six in the first year, eight in the second and ten in the third; only 86 livres.”
He did not stay in Ghirlandaio’s workshop for long, because he wanted to become a sculptor, and became an apprentice to Bertoldo, a follower of Donatello, who ran an art school in the Medici Gardens in Piazza San Marco. Biographers say that he was engaged there in drawing from old engravings, as well as copying, achieving enormous success in this.
The young artist was immediately noticed by Lorenzo the Magnificent, who patronized him and introduced him to his Neoplatonic circle of philosophers and writers. Already in 1490, they began to talk about the exceptional talent of the still very young Michelangelo Buonarroti. In 1494, with the approach of the troops of Charles VIII, he left Florence, returning to it in 1495. At twenty-one, Michelangelo went to Rome, and then in 1501 returned to his hometown.
Unfortunately, there is little information about Michelangelo's early paintings. The only painting he completed and survived is the tondo “Holy Family.” There is no exact documentary information about the time of creation of this tondo (a tondo is an easel painting or sculpture that has a round shape).
The composition of the painting is dominated by the figure of the Madonna. She is young and beautiful, calm and majestic. Michelangelo did not consider it necessary to tell in more detail what caused its complex movement. But it is precisely this movement that binds the Madonna, Joseph and the Child into one whole. This is not an ordinary happy family. There is no trace of intimacy here. This is the majestic “holy family”.

IN In 1504, the Florentine Signoria commissioned two frescoes from the famous artists Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo to decorate the walls of the Great Council Hall in the Palazzo Vecchio. Leonardo made a cardboard depicting the "Battle of Anghiari", and Michelangelo - "Battle of Cascina".
Unlike Leonardo, Michelangelo wanted to depict in the picture not a battle, but bathing soldiers who, having heard the alarm, rush to get out of the water. The artist painted eighteen figures, all of them in motion.
In 1506, both cardboards were put on display. However, the frescoes were never painted. The “Battle of Cascina” cardboard, valued by contemporaries more than all other works by Michelangelo, perished: it was cut into pieces and distributed among different hands until its last pieces disappeared without a trace. Vasari, who saw some of its parts, says that “it was more a divine than a human creation,” and the sculptor Benvenuto Cellini, who had the opportunity to study both cardboards - Michelangelo and Leonardo, testifies that they were “a school for the whole world.”
Vasari notes that in his cardboard Michelangelo used different techniques, trying to show off his perfect mastery of drawing: “There were many more figures, united in groups and sketched in different manners: the contours of some were outlined in charcoal, others were drawn with strokes, others were filled with shading and color chalk was placed on them, since he (that is, Michelangelo) wanted to show all his skill in this matter.”
In 1505, Pope Julius II summons Michelangelo. He decided to create a worthy tomb for himself during his lifetime. For more than thirty years, countless complications associated with this tomb constituted the tragedy of Michelangelo's life. The project was repeatedly changed and completely reworked until the completely exhausted artist, busy in his declining years with other orders, agreed to a smaller version of the tomb installed in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli.
Michelangelo reluctantly agreed to the commission given to him by Julius II in 1508 to paint the vault of the Sistine Chapel. According to the original plan, only the twelve apostles and the most ordinary ornamental decorations were depicted on the ceiling in the corresponding lunettes.
“But having already begun work,” wrote Michelangelo, “I saw that it would look poor, and I told the pope that with only the apostles it would be poor. Dad asked: why? I answered: because they themselves were poor people. Then he agreed and told me to do as I know..."
IN AND. Surikov wrote to P.P. Chistyakov: “Prophets, Sibyls, Evangelists and scenes of St. the writings flowed out so completely, not jammed anywhere, and the proportions of the paintings to the entire mass of the ceiling were maintained incomparably.”
“Initially, Michelangelo wanted to paint the vault with small compositions, almost decoratively, but then abandoned this idea. He creates his own painted architecture on the vault: powerful pillars seem to support the cornice and arches, “thrown” across the space of the chapel. All the spaces between these pillars and arches are occupied by images of human figures. This “architecture” depicted by Michelangelo organizes the painting and separates one composition from another.
A person entering the chapel immediately sees the entire cycle of paintings: even before starting to look at individual figures and scenes, he gets the first general idea of ​​the frescoes and how the master sets out the history of the world...
The entire history of the world, extremely tragically and personally read, appears before us in the paintings of the Sistine Chapel. In these grandiose frescoes, Michelangelo seems to be creating a world similar to his great soul - a gigantic, complex world, full of deep feelings and experiences” (I. Tuchkov).
Those who saw both before and now the “Sistine Plafond” were and will be shocked. There is a lot of evidence of this, one of them is from Bernard Bernson, the greatest modern art critic: “Michelangelo... created such an image of a man who can subjugate the earth, and, who knows, maybe more than the earth.” “Like a truly great work of art, this painting is infinitely broad and diverse in its ideological concept, so that people of the most varied mindsets... experience a blessed awe when contemplating it... On this ceiling, it’s as if the gigantic waves of human life, of our entire destiny, are rolling wave after wave... "(L. Lyubimov).
The creation of this painting was painful and difficult for the artist. Michelangelo has to build the scaffolding himself, working while lying on his back. Condivi says that while painting the Sistine Chapel, “Michelangelo so accustomed his eyes to look upward at the vault that later, when the work was completed and he began to hold his head straight, he saw almost nothing; when he had to read letters and papers, he had to hold them high above his head. Little by little he again began to get used to reading while looking down in front of him.”
Michelangelo himself conveys his condition on the scaffolding:

Breasts like harpies; skull to spite me
Climbed to the hump; and beard standing on end;
And mud flows from the brush onto the face,
Dressing me in brocade, like a coffin...

The election of Leo X from the Medici family as pope in 1513 contributed to the renewal of the artist’s connection with his hometown. In 1516, the new pope commissioned him to design the facade of the Church of San Lorenzo, built by Brunelleschi. This became the first architectural commission. Michelangelo spends a long time in the quarries, selecting marble for the upcoming work. He begins work on the chapel, but in 1520 Pope Leo X annuls the contract for the construction of the façade of San Lorenzo. The artist's four years of work were destroyed with the stroke of a pen.
In 1524, Michelangelo began construction of the Laurenziana Library. The fall of the Florentine Republic marked the most troubling period in Michelangelo's life. Despite his strong republican convictions, Michelangelo could not stand the anxiety of the upcoming events: he fled to Ferrara and Venice (1529) and wanted to take refuge in France. Florence declared him a rebel and deserter, but then forgave him and invited him to return. Hiding and experiencing enormous torment, he witnessed the fall of his native city and only later timidly turned to the pope, who in 1534 commissioned him to complete the painting of the Sistine Chapel.
The artist forever leaves Florence, which became the capital of the Duchy of Tuscany, and moves to Rome. A year later, Pope Paul III appointed him “painter, sculptor and architect of the Vatican,” and in 1536 Michelangelo began painting the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. He creates his most famous work - the painting “The Last Judgment”. He worked on this fresco for six years, completely alone.
“The theme of judgment over the world was close to old Michelangelo. On earth he saw grief and injustice; and now, in this work of his, he pronounces judgment on humanity.
In the center of the composition, the saints surround the young and formidable Christ. They crowd around his throne, presenting evidence of the torment they experienced. They demand, they demand, not ask, a fair trial. In fear, Mary clings to her son, and Christ, rising from the throne, seems to push away the people who are advancing on him. No, this is not a kind and forgiving god, this is, in the words of Michelangelo himself, “the blade of judgment and the weight of wrath.” Obeying his gesture, the dead rise from the bowels of the earth to stand trial. With iron inevitability they rise upward, some of them enter heaven, and some are cast into hell. Maddened with horror, sinners fall. And Charon is waiting for them below to transport them into the arms of Minos. Beginning at the bottom left, the round dance of human bodies, having completed a circle, closes at the bottom right on the threshold of hell.
"The Last Judgment" is conceived as grandly as possible, as the last moment before the disappearance of the Universe into chaos, as the dream of the gods before its sunset...” (Bernson).
Paul III visited the chapel every now and then. One day he went there with Biagio da Cesena, his master of ceremonies.
- How do you like these figures? - Dad asked him.
“I apologize to your Holiness, but these naked bodies seem to me simply blasphemous and unsuitable for a holy temple.”
Dad said nothing. But when the visitors left, Michelangelo, seething with indignation, took a brush and painted the devil Minos, giving him a portrait resemblance to the papal master of ceremonies. Having heard about this, Biagio ran to dad with a complaint. To which he replied: “Biagio, my dear, if Michelangelo had placed you in purgatory, I would have made every effort to rescue you from there, but since he placed you in hell, my intervention is useless, I no longer have power there.”
And Minos, with the feisty face of a master of ceremonies, remains in the picture to this day.

During the Catholic reaction, Michelangelo's fresco with its abundance of beautiful and strong naked bodies seemed somewhat blasphemous, especially considering its placement behind the altar. A little time will pass, and Pope Paul IV will order the nudity of individual characters to be recorded with drapery. The draperies were made by the artist's friend Daniele da Volterra. Perhaps by this he saved the great fresco from destruction by figures of the Catholic reaction.
After finishing The Last Judgment, Michelangelo reached the pinnacle of fame among his contemporaries. He forgot to bare his head in front of dad, and dad, in his own words, did not notice this. Popes and kings sat him next to them.
From 1542 to 1550, Michelangelo created his last paintings - two frescoes of the Paolina Chapel in the Vatican. As E. Rotenberg writes: “Both frescoes are multi-figure compositions with the central character depicted at the decisive moment of his life, surrounded by witnesses to this event. Much here looks unusual for Michelangelo. Although the frescoes themselves are quite large (the dimensions of each are 6.2 x 6.61 meters), they are no longer endowed with that super-ordinary scale that was previously an integral property of Michelangelo’s images. The concentration of action is very uniquely combined with the dispersion of the characters, who form separate episodes and isolated motives within the compositions. But this dispersion is contrasted with a single emotional tone, expressed very tangibly and constituting, in fact, the basis of the impact of these works on the viewer - a tone of oppressive, constraining tragedy, inextricably linked with their ideological concept.”
In recent years, Michelangelo has been drafting the central plan of the Church of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini, sketching the plan for the Sforza Chapel in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, building Porta Pia, and giving a promising monumental appearance to the Capitol Square.
In life, Michelangelo did not know tender affection and participation, and this, in turn, was reflected in his character. “Art is jealous,” he says, “and demands the whole person.” “I have a wife to whom everything belongs, and my children are my creations.” The woman who would understand Michelangelo must have had great intelligence and innate tact.
He met such a woman - Vittoria Colonna, the granddaughter of the Duke of Urbana and the widow of the famous commander Marquis of Pescaro, but it was too late: he was then already sixty years old. Vittoria was interested in science, philosophy, and religious issues, and was a famous poetess of the Renaissance.
Until her death, 10 years old, they constantly communicated and exchanged poems. Her death was a great loss for Michelangelo.
The friendship of Vittoria Colonna softened the heavy losses for him - first the loss of his father, then his brothers, of whom only Lionard remained, with whom Michelangelo maintained a cordial connection until his death. In all his actions and words, always homogeneous, consistent, clear, Michelangelo is seen as a strict thinker and a man of honor and justice, as in his works.
Dying, Michelangelo left a short will, as in life, he did not like verbosity. “I give my soul to God, my body to the earth, my property to my relatives,” he dictated to his friends.
Michelangelo died on February 18, 1564. His body was buried in the Church of Santa Croce in Florence.

Michelangelo Buonarroti- one of the greatest masters. During his lifetime, he received recognition and was considered a genius of world significance.

Born on March 6, 1475, he lived a long life, dying in 1564. During his 88 years, he created so many magnificent works that there would be enough of them for a good dozen talented people. In addition to being a great painter, sculptor and architect, Michelangelo Buonarroti is also a major thinker and famous poet of the Renaissance.

Surely everyone has seen the famous sculptures of David and Moses, as well as the stunning frescoes of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. By the way, the “David” statue, according to the master’s great contemporaries, “took away the glory of all statues, modern and ancient, Greek and Roman.” It is still considered one of the most famous and perfect works of art.

Portrait of Michelangelo Buonarroti

It is curious that this outstanding figure had a very unprepossessing appearance. A similar situation existed with the appearance of another genius, about whom we have already written. Maybe this is why Michelangelo did not leave a single self-portrait, as many artists did?

According to the description of people who knew the master, he had sparse, slightly curly hair, a thin beard, a round face with a square forehead and sunken cheeks. His wide, hooked nose and prominent cheekbones did not make him attractive, but rather the opposite.

But this did not at all prevent the rulers of that time and the most noble people from treating the hitherto unprecedented genius of art with reverent awe.

So, we present to your attention Michelangelo Buonarroti.

The story of one fake

In ancient Rome, noble and wealthy citizens complained that too many different fakes of even more ancient masterpieces of art began to appear on sale.

During the time of the great Italian about whom we are talking, talented craftsmen also sinned with this.

Michelangelo once made a copy of a famous Greek statue. It was very good, and a close friend told him: “If you bury it in the ground, in a few years it will look like the original.”

Without thinking twice, the still young genius followed this advice. And indeed, after some time he very successfully sold the “ancient sculpture” for a high price.

As you can see, the history of fakes and all kinds of forgeries is as old as the world.

Florentine Michelangelo Buonarroti

It is known that Michelangelo never signed his works. However, there is one exception. He signed the sculptural composition “Pieta”. They say it happened like this.

When the masterpiece was ready and put on public display, the young 25-year-old master got lost in the crowd and tried to determine what impression his work had on the people.

And then, to his horror, he heard two residents of the Italian city of Milan actively discussing the fact that only their fellow countryman could create such a wondrous thing.

And at that time, real competitions took place between the cultural centers of Europe for the title of the most prestigious and prolific, in terms of geniuses, cities.

Being a native resident of Florence, our hero could not stand the vile accusation that he was a Milanese and made his way into the cathedral at night, taking with him the necessary chisels and other tools. By the light of a lamp, he carved a proud inscription on the Madonna’s belt: “Michelangelo Buonarroti, Florentine.”

After this, no one dared to “privatize” the origins of the great master. However, they say that he later regretted this outburst of pride.

By the way, you may be interested in one, also a great Renaissance artist.

"The Last Judgment" by Michelangelo

When the artist was working on the fresco “The Last Judgment,” Pope Paul III often visited him and monitored the progress of the work. He often came to see the fresco with his master of ceremonies, Biagio da Cesena.

One day Paul III asked Cesena how he liked the fresco being created.

“Your Grace,” answered the master of ceremonies, “these images are more suitable for some tavern, and not for your holy chapel.”

Hearing this insult, Michelangelo Buonarroti depicted his critic in a fresco as King Minos, judge of the souls of the dead. He had donkey ears and a snake wrapped around his neck.

The next time, Cesena immediately noticed that this image was painted from him. Enraged, he persistently asked Pope Paul to order Michelangelo to erase his image.

But the Pope, amused by the impotent anger of his courtier, said:

“My influence extends only to the heavenly powers, and, unfortunately, I have no power over the representatives of hell.”

Thus, he hinted that Cesara himself had to find a common language with the artist and agree on everything.

Through corpses to art

At the beginning of his creative career, Michelangelo Buonarroti had very little understanding of features. But he was very attracted to this topic, because in order to become a good sculptor and artist, one had to have an impeccable knowledge of anatomy.

Interestingly, to fill in the missing knowledge, the young master spent a lot of time in the morgue, which was located at the monastery, where he studied the corpses of dead people. By the way, I carried out my scientific research in a similar way.

Michelangelo's Broken Nose

The genius abilities of the future master manifested themselves very early. While studying at the school of sculptors, which was patronized by Lorenzo de' Medici himself, the head of the Florentine Republic, he made many enemies for himself not only with his unusual talent, but also with his stubborn character.

It is known that once one of the teachers named Pietro Torrigiano broke the nose of Michelangelo Buonarroti with a blow from his fist. They say that he could not control himself because of wild envy of his talented student.

Various facts about Michelangelo

An interesting fact is that the great genius did not have close relationships with women until he was 60 years old. Apparently, art completely absorbed him, and he directed all his energy only to serve his calling.

However, at the age of 60, he met a 47-year-old widow named Victoria Colonna, Marchioness of Pescara. But even when he wrote her many sonnets filled with sweet melancholy, according to many biographers, they did not have a closer relationship than platonic love.

While Michelangelo Buonarroti was working on the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel, he seriously compromised his health. The fact is that without any assistants, he worked tirelessly for 4 whole years on this world masterpiece.

Witnesses report that he could not take off his shoes for weeks and, forgetting about sleep and food, painted thousands of square meters of the ceiling with his own hands. At the same time, he breathed in harmful paint fumes, which, moreover, constantly got into his eyes.

Finally, it is only worth adding that Michelangelo was distinguished by a sharp and extremely strong character. His will was harder than granite, and this fact was recognized by many of his contemporaries who dealt with him.

They say that Leo X said about Michelangelo: “He is terrible. You can’t deal with him!”

How the great sculptor and artist could have intimidated the almighty Pope so much is unknown.

Works of Michelangelo

We invite you to familiarize yourself with the most famous works of Michelangelo. The master did many of the works without any sketches or sketches, but just like that, keeping the finished model in his head.

Last Judgment

Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel

David

Bacchus

Madonna of Bruges

The Torment of Saint Anthony

Madonna Doni

Pieta

Moses

Crucifixion of Saint Peter

Staircase in the Laurentian Library

Project for the dome of St. Peter's Basilica

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Michelangelo di Lodovico di Leonardo di Buonarroti Simoni is the most famous painter from Italy, a genius of architectural and sculptural works, a thinker of the High Renaissance and the early Baroque period. 9 of the 13 popes who were on the throne during the time of Michelangelo invited a master to carry out work in and.

Little Michelangelo was born in the early morning of March 6, 1475, Monday, into the family of the bankrupt banker and nobleman Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni in the Tuscan town of Caprese, near the province of Arezzo, where his father held the position of podestà ), head of the Italian medieval administration.

Family and childhood

Two days after his birth, on March 8, 1475, the boy was baptized in the Church of San Giovanni di Caprese. Michelangelo was the 2nd child in a large family. Mother, Francesca Neri del Miniato Siena, gave birth to her first son Lionardo in 1473, Buonarroto was born in 1477, and fourth son Giovansimone was born in 1479. in 1481 the younger Gismondo was born. Exhausted by frequent pregnancies, the woman dies in 1481, when Michelangelo was barely 6 years old.

In 1485, the father of a large family married for the second time to Lucrezia Ubaldini di Galliano, who was unable to give birth to her own children and raised adopted boys as her own. Unable to cope with the large family, his father gave Michelangelo to the Topolino foster family in the city of Settignano. The father of the new family worked as a stonemason, and his wife knew the child from childhood, as she was Michelangelo’s wet nurse. It was there that the boy began working with clay and picked up a chisel for the first time.

To give his heir an education, Michelangelo's father enrolled him in the educational institution of Francesco Galatea da Urbino, located in Firenze. But he turned out to be an unimportant student; the boy liked to draw more, copying icons and frescoes.

First works

In 1488, the young painter achieved his goal and went to study in the workshop of Domenico Ghirlandaio, where he spent a year learning the basics of painting techniques. During his year of study, Michelangelo created several pencil copies of famous paintings and a copy of an engraving by the German painter Martin Schongauer entitled “Tormento di Sant’Antonio”.

In 1489, the young man was enrolled in the art school of Bertoldo di Giovanni, organized under the patronage of Lorenzo Medici, the ruler of Florence. Noticing the genius of Michelangelo, the Medici took him under his protection, helping him develop his abilities and fulfill expensive orders.

In 1490, Michelangelo continued his studies at the Academy of Humanism at the Medici court, where he met the philosophers Marsilio Ficino and Angelo Ambrogini, the future Popes: Leo PP. X and Clement VII (Clemens PP. VII). During 2 years of study at the Academy, Michelangelo creates:

• Marble relief of the “Madonna of the Staircase” (“Madonna della scala”), 1492, is exhibited in the Casa Buonarroti Museum in Florence;
• Marble relief "Battle of the Centaurs" ("Battaglia dei centauri"), 1492, exhibited in Casa Buonarroti;
• Sculpture by Bertoldo di Giovanni.

On April 8, 1492, the influential patron of talent, Lorenzo de' Medici, dies, and Michelangelo decides to return to his father's house.

In 1493, with the permission of the rector of the church of Santa Maria del Santo Spirito, he studied anatomy on corpses at the church hospital. In gratitude for this, the master makes for the priest a wooden “Crucifix” (“Crocifisso di Santo Spirito”), 142 cm in height, which is now displayed in the church in the side chapel.

To Bologna

In 1494, Michelangelo left Florence not wanting to participate in the Savonarola uprising (Savonarola) and went to (Bologna), where he immediately took on the task of completing an order of 3 small figurines for the tomb of St. Dominic (San Domenico) in the church of the same name “St. Dominic” (“Chiesa di San Domenico”):

• “Angel with a candelabra” (“Angelo reggicandelabro”), 1495;
• “Saint Petronio” (“San Petronio”), patron saint of Bologna, 1495;
• "Saint Proclus" ("San Procolo"), Italian warrior-saint, 1495

In Bologna, the sculptor learns to create difficult reliefs by observing the actions of Jacopo della Quercia in the Basilica of San Petronio. Elements of this work would be reproduced by Michelangelo later on the ceiling ("Cappella Sistina").

Florence and Rome

In 1495, the 20-year-old master again came to Florence, where power was in the hands of Girolamo Savonarola, but did not receive any orders from the new rulers. He returns to the Medici Palace and begins working for Lorenzo’s heir, Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de’ Medici, creating for him the now lost statues:

• “John the Baptist” (“San Giovannino”), 1496;
• “Sleeping Cupid” (“Cupido dormiente”), 1496

Lorenzo asked the last statue to be aged; he wanted to sell the work of art at a higher price, passing it off as an antique find. But Cardinal Raffaele Riario, who purchased the fake, discovered the deception, however, impressed by the work of the author, he did not make claims against him, inviting him to work in Rome.

June 25, 1496 Michelangelo arrives in Rome, where in 3 years he creates the greatest masterpieces: marble sculptures of the god of wine Bacchus (Bacco) and (Pietà).

Heritage

Throughout his subsequent life, Michelangelo repeatedly worked in Rome and Florence, fulfilling the most labor-intensive orders of the Popes.

The creativity of the brilliant master was manifested not only in sculptures, but also in painting and architecture, leaving many unsurpassed masterpieces. Unfortunately, some works have not reached our time: some were lost, others were deliberately destroyed. In 1518, the sculptor first destroyed all the sketches for painting the Sistine Chapel (Cappella Sistina), and 2 days before his death, he again ordered his unfinished drawings to be burned so that his descendants would not see his creative torment.

Personal life

It is not known for certain whether Michelangelo had a close relationship with his passions or not, but the homosexual nature of his attraction is evident in many of the maestro’s poetic works.

At the age of 57, he dedicated many of his sonnets and madrigals to the 23-year-old Tommaso dei Cavalieri(Tommaso Dei Cavalieri). Many of their joint poetic works speak of mutual and touching love for each other.

In 1542, Michelangelo met Cecchino de Bracci, who died in 1543. The Maestro was so saddened by the loss of his friend that he wrote a cycle of 48 sonnets, praising grief and sadness over an irreparable loss.

One of the young men posing for Michelangelo, Febo di Poggio, constantly asked the master for money, gifts and jewelry in exchange for reciprocated love, receiving the nickname “little blackmailer” for this.

The second young man, Gherardo Perini, also posing for the sculptor, did not hesitate to take advantage of Michelangelo’s favor and simply robbed his admirer.

In his twilight years, the sculptor felt a wonderful sense of affection for a female representative, the widow and poetess Vittoria Colonna, whom he had known for more than 40 years. Their correspondence constitutes a significant monument of Michelangelo's era.

Death

Michelangelo's life was interrupted on February 18, 1564 in Rome. He died in the presence of a servant, doctors and friends, having managed to dictate his will, promising the Lord his soul, the earth his body, and his relatives his property. A tomb was built for the sculptor, but two days after his death the body was temporarily transported to the Basilica of Santi Apostoli, and in July he was buried in the Basilica of Santa Croce in the center of Florence.

Painting

Despite the fact that the main manifestation of Michelangelo's genius was the creation of sculptures, he has many masterpieces of painting. According to the author, high-quality paintings should resemble sculptures and reflect the volume and relief of the presented images.

“The Battle of Cascina” (“Battaglia di Cascina”) was created by Michelangelo in 1506 for painting one of the walls of the Great Council Hall in the Apostolic Palace (Palazzo Apostolico) commissioned by the gonfaloniere Pier Soderini. But the work remained unfinished, since the author was summoned to Rome.

On a huge cardboard in the premises of the Sant’Onofrio hospital, the artist masterfully depicted soldiers in a hurry to stop swimming in the Arno River.

The bugle from the camp called them to battle and the men in a hurry grab their weapons, armor, pull clothes over their wet bodies, while helping their comrades. The cardboard housed in the Papal Hall became a school for artists such as Antonio da Sangallo, Raffaello Santi, Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio, Francesco Granacci, and later Andrea del Sarto del Sarto), Jacopo Sansovino, Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Perino del Vaga and others. They came to work and copied from a unique canvas, trying to get closer to the talent of the great master. The cardboard has not survived to this day.

“Madonna Doni” or “Holy Family” (Tondo Doni) - a round painting with a diameter of 120 cm is exhibited in (Galleria degli Uffizi) in Florence. Made in 1507 in the “Cangiante” style, when the skin of the depicted characters resembles marble. Most of the picture is occupied by the figure of the Mother of God, with John the Baptist behind her. They are holding the Christ child in their arms. The work is filled with complex symbolism, subject to various interpretations.

Manchester Madonna

Entombment (Deposizione di Cristo nel sepolcro) was executed in 1501 in oil on wood. Another unfinished work by Michelangelo, owned by the London National Gallery. The main figure of the work was the body of Jesus taken from the cross. His followers carry their teacher to the grave. Presumably, John the Evangelist is depicted to the left of Christ in red clothes. Other characters could be: Nikodim and Joseph of Arimathea. On the left, Mary Magdalene is kneeling in front of the teacher, and on the bottom right, the image of the Mother of God is outlined, but not drawn.

Madonna and Child

The sketch “Madonna and Child” (Madonna col Bambino) was made between 1520 and 1525 and can easily turn into a full-fledged painting in the hands of any artist. Kept in the Casa Buonarroti Museum in Florence. First, on the first piece of paper, he drew the skeletons of future images, then on the second, he “increased” muscles on the skeleton. Nowadays, the work has been exhibited with great success in museums in America over the past three decades.

Leda and the swan

The lost painting “Leda and the Swan” (“Leda e il cigno”), created in 1530 for the Duke of Ferrara Alfonso I d’Este (Italian: Alfonso I d’Este) is known today only through copies. But the Duke did not get the painting; the nobleman sent to Michelangelo for the work commented on the master’s work: “Oh, this is nothing!” The artist kicked out the envoy and gave the masterpiece to his student Antonio Mini, whose two sisters were soon getting married. Antonio took the work to France, where it was bought by the monarch Francis I (François Ier). The painting belonged to the Château de Fontainebleau until it was destroyed in 1643 by François Sublet de Noyers, who considered the image too voluptuous.

Cleopatra

The painting “Cleopatra”, created in 1534, is the ideal of female beauty. The work is interesting because on the other side of the sheet there is another sketch in black chalk, but it is so ugly that art historians have made the assumption that the author of the sketch belongs to one of the master’s students. The portrait of the Egyptian queen was given to Tommaso dei Cavalieri by Michelangelo. Perhaps Tommaso tried to paint one of the ancient statues, but the work was not crowned with success, then Michelangelo turned the page and turned the squalor into a masterpiece.

Venus and Cupid

The cardboard "Venere and Cupid", created in 1534, was used by the painter Jacopo Carucci to create the painting "Venus and Cupid". The oil painting on wood panel measures 1 m 28 cm by 1 m 97 cm and is in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. ABOUT The original of Michelangelo's work has not survived to this day.

Pieta

The drawing “Pietà per Vittoria Colonna” was written in 1546 for Michelangelo’s friend, the poetess Vittoria Colonna. The chaste woman not only dedicated her work to God and the church, but also forced the artist to penetrate deeper into the spirit of religion. It was to her that the master dedicated a series of religious drawings, among which was “Pieta”.

Michelangelo repeatedly wondered if he was competing with God himself in an attempt to achieve perfection in art. The work is kept in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.

Epiphany

The sketch “Epiphany” (“Epifania”) is a grandiose work by the artist, completed in 1553. It was made on 26 sheets of paper with a height of 2 m 32 cm 7 mm after much thought (multiple traces of changes in the sketch are noticeable on the paper). In the center of the composition is the Virgin Mary, who with her left hand pushes Saint Joseph away from her. At the feet of the Mother of God is the baby Jesus, in front of Joseph is the baby St. John. On Mary’s right hand there is a figure of a man, unidentified by art historians. The work is exhibited at the British Museum in London.

Sculptures

Today, 57 works belonging to Michelangelo are known, about 10 sculptures have been lost. The master did not sign his work and cultural workers continue to “find” more and more new works by the sculptor.

Bacchus

The sculpture of the drunken god of wine made of Bacchus marble, 2 m 3 cm high, is depicted in 1497 with a glass of wine in his hand and with bunches of grapes, symbolizing the hair on his head. He is accompanied by a goat-footed satyr. The customer for one of Michelangelo's first masterpieces was Cardinal Raffaele della Rovere, who subsequently refused to take the work back. In 1572, the statue was bought by the Medici family. Today it is exhibited in the Italian Bargello Museum in Florence.

Roman Pieta

Order to paint a ceiling with an area of ​​about 600 sq. m. “Sistine Chapel” (“Sacellum Sixtinum”), Pope Julius II (Iulius PP. II) gave the Apostolic Palace to the master after their reconciliation. Before this, Michelangelo lived in Florence, he was angry with the pope, who refused to pay for the construction of his own tomb.

The talented sculptor had never done frescoes before, but he completed the order of the royal person in the shortest possible time, painting the ceiling with three hundred figures and nine scenes from the Bible.

Creation of Adam

“The Creation of Adam” (“La creazione di Adamo”) is the most famous and beautiful fresco of the chapel, completed in 1511. One of the central compositions is full of symbolism and hidden meaning. God the Father, surrounded by angels, is depicted flying into infinity. He reaches out his hand to meet Adam's outstretched hand, breathing the soul into the ideal human body.

Last Judgment

The Last Judgment fresco (“Giudizio universale”) is the largest fresco of Michelangelo’s era. The master worked on the image measuring 13 m 70 cm by 12 m for 6 years, finishing it in 1541. In the center is a figure of Christ with his right hand raised up. He is no longer a messenger of peace, but a formidable judge. Next to Jesus were the apostles: Saint Peter, Saint Lawrence, Saint Bartholomew, Saint Sebastian and others.

The dead look at the judge with horror, awaiting the verdict. Those saved by Christ are resurrected, but the sinners are carried away by the devil himself.

“The Universal Flood” is the first fresco painted by Michelangelo on the ceiling of the chapel in 1512. The sculptor was helped to carry out this work by masters from Florence, but soon their work ceased to satisfy the maestro and he refused outside help. The image depicts human fears at the last moment of life. Everything is already flooded with water, except for a few high hills, where people are desperately trying to avoid death.

“Libyan Sibyl” (“Libyan sibyl”) is one of the 5 depicted by Michelangelo on the ceiling of the chapel. A graceful woman with a tome is presented half-turned. According to art historians, the artist copied the image of the Sibyl from a posing young man. According to legend, she was a dark-skinned African woman of average height. The maestro decided to portray a soothsayer with white skin and blond hair.

Separation of Light from Darkness

The fresco “The Separation of Light from Dark,” like other frescoes in the chapel, is filled with a riot of colors and emotions. The higher mind, full of love for all things, has such incredible power that Chaos is unable to prevent it from separating light from darkness. Giving the Almighty a human form suggests that each person has the power to create a small universe within himself, distinguishing between good and evil, light and darkness, knowledge and ignorance.

Saint Paul's Cathedral

At the beginning of the 16th century, Michelangelo, as an architect, participated in the creation of the plan for St. Peter's Basilica together with the architect Donato Bramante. But the latter disliked Buonarroti and constantly plotted against his opponent.

Forty years later, the construction completely passed into the hands of Michelangelo, who returned to Bramante's plan, rejecting the plan of Giuliano da Sangallo. The maestro introduced more monumentality into the old plan when he abandoned the complex division of space. He also increased the dome pylons and simplified the shape of the semi-domes. Thanks to innovations, the building acquired integrity, as if it were cut from one piece of material.

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Chapel Paolina

Michelangelo was able to begin painting the “Cappella Paolina” in the Apostolic Palace only in 1542 at the age of 67 years. Long work on the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel greatly undermined his health; inhaled fumes of paint and plaster led to general weakness and heart disease. The paint ruined his vision, the master hardly ate, did not sleep, and did not take off his boots for weeks. As a result, Buonarroti stopped work twice and returned to it again, creating two amazing frescoes.

“Conversion of the Apostle Paul” (“Conversione di Saulo”) is Michelangelo’s first fresco in the “Paolina Chapel” measuring 6 m 25 cm by 6 m 62 cm, completed in 1545. The Apostle Paul was considered the patron saint of Pope Paul III (Paulus PP III) . The author depicted a moment from the Bible, which describes how the Lord himself appeared to Saul as an implacable persecutor of Christians, turning the sinner into a preacher.

Crucifixion of Saint Peter

The fresco “Crucifixion of St. Peter” (“Crocifissione di San Pietro”) measuring 6 m 25 cm by 6 m 62 cm was completed by Michelangelo in 1550 and became the artist’s final painting. Saint Peter was sentenced to death by Emperor Nero, but the condemned man wished to be crucified upside down, since he did not consider himself worthy to accept death like Christ.

Many artists, depicting this scene, encountered misunderstandings. Michelangelo solved the problem by presenting the crucifixion scene before the erection of the cross.

Architecture

During the second half of his life, Michelangelo increasingly began to turn to architecture. During the construction of architectural monuments, the maestro successfully destroyed the old canons, putting into the work all the knowledge and skills accumulated over the years.

In the Basilica of St. Lawrence (Basilica di San Lorenzo), Michelangelo worked not only on the Medici tombs. The church, built in 393 during reconstruction in the 15th century, was supplemented with the Old Sacristy according to the design of Filippo Brunelleschi.

Later, Michelangelo became the author of the project for the New Sacristy, built on the other side of the church. In 1524, by order of Clement VII (Clemens PP. VII), the architect designed and built the building of the Laurentian Library (Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana) on the south side of the church. A complex staircase, floors and ceilings, windows and benches - every little detail was carefully thought out by the author.

“Porta Pia” is a gate in the northeast (Mura aureliane) in Rome on the ancient Via Nomentana. Michelangelo made three projects, of which the customer, Pope Pius IV (Pius PP. IV), approved the least expensive option, where the facade resembled a theater curtain.

The author did not live to see the construction of the gate completed. After the gate was partially destroyed by lightning in 1851, Pope Pius IX (Pius PP. IX) ordered its reconstruction, changing the original appearance of the building.

The titular basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri (Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri) is located on the Roman (Piazza della Repubblica) and was erected in honor of Our Lady, the holy martyrs and God's angels. Pope Pius IV entrusted the development of a construction plan to Michelangelo in 1561. The author of the project did not live to see the completion of the work, which occurred in 1566.

Poetry

The last three decades of Michelangelo's life were not only engaged in architecture, he wrote many madrigals and sonnets, which were not published during the author's lifetime. In poetry, he sang love, glorified harmony and described the tragedy of loneliness. Buonarroti's poems were first published in 1623. In total, about three hundred of his poems, just under 1,500 letters from personal correspondence and about three hundred pages of personal notes have survived.

1. Michelangelo's talent was evident in the fact that he saw his works before they were created. The master personally selected pieces of marble for future sculptures and transported them to the workshop himself. He always stored and treasured unprocessed blocks as finished masterpieces.
2. The future “David,” which appeared before Michelangelo as a huge piece of marble, turned out to be the sculpture that two previous masters had already abandoned. For 3 years the maestro worked on his masterpiece, presenting the naked “David” to the public in 1504.
3. At the age of 17, Michelangelo quarreled with 20-year-old Pietro Torrigiano, also an artist, who managed to break his opponent’s nose in a fight. Since then, in all the images of the sculptor he is presented with a disfigured face.
4. The “Pieta” in St. Peter’s Basilica impresses the audience so much that it has been repeatedly attacked by individuals with unstable psyches. In 1972, Australian geologist Laszlo Toth committed an act of vandalism by hitting the sculpture 15 times with a hammer. After this, the Pietà was placed behind glass.
5. The author's favorite sculptural composition, Pietà, “Lamentation of Christ,” turned out to be the only signed work. When the masterpiece was unveiled in St. Peter's Basilica, people began to speculate that its creator was Cristoforo Solari. Then Michelangelo, having made his way into the cathedral at night, embossed on the folds of the Mother of God’s clothing “Michelangelo Buonarotti, a Florentine sculpture,” but later he regretted his pride, never signing his works again.
6. While working on The Last Judgment, the master accidentally fell from high scaffolding, severely injuring his leg. He saw this as a bad omen and did not want to work anymore. The artist locked himself in the room, not letting anyone in and deciding to die. But the famous doctor and friend of Michelangelo, Baccio Rontini, wanted to cure the wayward stubborn man, and since the doors did not open for him, with great difficulty he made his way into the house through the cellar. The doctor forced Buonarroti to take medication and helped him recover.
7. The power of the master's art only gains strength over time. Over the past 4 years, more than a hundred people have sought medical help after visiting rooms with Michelangelo's works on display. Particularly impressive to viewers is the statue of a naked “David”, in front of which people have repeatedly lost consciousness. They complained of disorientation, dizziness, apathy and nausea. Doctors at the Santa Maria Nuova Hospital call this emotional state “David syndrome.”

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Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475 in the Tuscan town of Caprese north of Arezzo, the son of an impoverished Florentine nobleman, Lodovico Buonarroti, a city councilor. The father was not rich, and the income from his small property in the village was barely enough to support many children. In this regard, he was forced to give Michelangelo to a nurse, the wife of a Scarpelino from the same village, called Settignano. There, raised by the Topolino couple, the boy learned to knead clay and use a chisel before reading and writing. In 1488, Michelangelo's father came to terms with his son's inclinations and placed him as an apprentice in the workshop. Thus began the flowering of genius.

Today we present to you a selection of the most interesting facts about the Italian sculptor, one of the greatest masters of the Renaissance - Michelangelo Buonarroti.

1) According to the American edition of The New York Times, although Michelangelo often complained about losses and was often spoken of as a poor man, in 1564, when he died, his fortune was equal to tens of millions of dollars in modern equivalent.

2) A distinctive feature of Michelangelo’s works is the nude human figure, executed in the smallest detail and striking in its naturalism. However, at the beginning of his career, the sculptor did not know the features of the human body so well. And he had to learn them. He did this in the monastery morgue, where he examined dead people and their entrails.

3) Many of his caustic judgments about the works of other artists have reached us. Here, for example, is how he responded to someone’s painting depicting grief over Christ: “ It's truly sad to look at her" Another creator, who painted a picture where the bull turned out best, received the following comment from Michelangelo about his work: “ Every artist paints himself well».

4) One of the greatest works is the vault of the Sistine Chapel, on which he worked for 4 years. The work consists of individual frescoes, which together represent a huge composition on the ceiling of the building. Michelangelo kept the whole picture as a whole and its individual parts in his head. There were no preliminary sketches, etc. During his work, he did not let anyone into the room, not even the Pope.

"Lamentation of Christ", Michelangelo Buonarotti. St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican.

5) When Michelangelo completed his first “Pieta” and it was exhibited in St. Peter’s Basilica (at that time Michelangelo was only 24 years old), the author heard rumors that people attributed this work to another sculptor - Cristoforo Solari. Then Michelangelo carved on the belt of the Virgin Mary: “This was done by the Florentine Michelangelo Buonarotti.” He later regretted this outburst of pride and never signed his sculptures again - this is the only one.

6) Michelangelo did not communicate with women until he was 60 years old. That is why his female sculptures resemble male bodies. Only in his seventies did he meet his first love and muse. She herself was then over forty, she was a widow and found solace in poetry.

7) The sculptor did not consider anyone his equal. Sometimes he yielded to those in power, on whom he depended, but in relations with them he showed his indomitable temper. According to a contemporary, he inspired fear even in the popes. Leo X said about Michelangelo: “ He's scary. You can't deal with him».

8) Michelangelo wrote poetry:

And even Phoebus can’t hug at once
With its ray the cold globe of the earth.
And we are even more afraid of the hour of the night,
Like a sacrament before which the mind fades.
The night flees from the light, as from leprosy,
And is protected by pitch darkness.
The crunch of a branch or the dry click of a trigger
It’s not to her liking - she’s so afraid of the evil eye.
Fools are free to prostrate themselves before her.
Envious like a widow queen
She doesn’t mind destroying fireflies either.
Although prejudices are strong,
From sunlight a shadow is born
And at sunset it turns into night.

Tomb of Michelangelo Buonarroti in Santa Croce

9) Before his death, he burned many sketches, realizing that there were no technical means to implement them.

10) The famous statue of David was made by Michelangelo from a piece of white marble left over from another sculptor who unsuccessfully tried to work with this piece and then abandoned it.

David

11) In the winter of 1494, there was a very heavy snowfall in Florence. The ruler of the Florentine Republic, Piero di Medici, ordered Michelangelo to sculpt a snow statue. The artist completed the order, but, unfortunately, no information about what the snowman sculpted by Michelangelo looked like has been preserved.

12) Having ascended the papal throne, Julius II decided to build himself a magnificent tomb. The Pontiff gave Michelangelo unlimited freedom in creativity and money. He was carried away by the idea and personally went to the place where marble for the statues was mined - to Cararra. Returning to Rome almost a year later, having spent a lot of money on the delivery of marble, Michelangelo discovered that Julius II had already lost interest in the tomb project. And he is not going to pay the expenses! The angry sculptor immediately abandoned everything - the workshop, the blocks of marble, the orders - and left Rome without the pope's permission.

13) In the history of art there is the following incident. Michelangelo placed high demands on his works and judged them strictly. When asked what an ideal statue is, he replied: “Every statue should be designed in such a way that it could be rolled down a mountain without a single piece breaking off.”

Michelangelo di Lodovico di Leonardo di Buonarroti Simoni (1475 - 1564) - great Italian sculptor, artist, architect, poet, thinker. One of the greatest masters of the Renaissance.

BIOGRAPHY OF MICHELANGELO

One of the most famous sculptors, artists, poets, painters and architects of all times, Michelangelo Buonarotti was born on 03/06/1475 in the city of Caprese, where he studied in primary school, and after graduation, in 1488, he began to study sculpture, being a student of Bertoldo in the workshop of the greatest painter history - Domenico Ghirlandaio.

Lorenzo de' Medici was attracted by the boy's talent, so he accepted him into his home and financially helped Michelangelo develop. When Lorenzo died, Buonarotti went to Bologna, where he erected a marble angel with a candelabra, as well as a statue for the Church of St. Petronius. In 1494 he returned to Florence again. A new period of his creativity began, in which he boldly exaggerated the forms of nature in order to express his ideas and better convey characters.

In 1503, Michelangelo was invited to Rome by Julius II to build a tombstone, which Julius wanted to make for himself during his lifetime. The sculptor agreed and came. Two years later, Buonarotti felt that the pope’s attention to him was not enough and, offended, returned to Florence.

The artist was in Rome already in 1508, where he was again summoned by Julius II to continue the work he had begun, as well as to complete a new order - decorating the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Palace with fresco painting. Julius II died a couple of months after completing the painting of the Sistine ceiling.

The fall of Florence, which threatened Michelangelo with the danger of death, caused a serious shock in his soul and also worsened his health. And being already unsociable and stern, he became even more unsociable and gloomier, plunging completely and completely into his ideological world, which could not but affect the nature of his work.

In 1532, he received an invitation from the “new” pope to Rome to complete the decoration of the Sistine Chapel, depicting “The Last Judgment” on the altar wall and “The Fall of Lucifer” on the opposite wall. Only the first was performed by Buonarotti in 1534-1541 without assistants.

The last works of Michelangelo were the frescoes in the chapel of the Vatican Palace. Buonarotti a little later parted with sculpture, his favorite industry, in which he worked in his old age.

The artist was engaged in architecture, living out his last years. He was appointed in 1546 as the chief architect of Peter's Cathedral, because Michelangelo was not only talented, but also experienced in construction.

MICHELANGELO'S WORK

Michelangelo's work belongs to the High Renaissance. Already in his youthful works, such as the reliefs “Madonna of the Stairs” and “Battle of the Centaurs” (both around 1490-1492), the main features of Michelangelo’s art emerge: monumentality, plastic power and dramatic images, reverence for the beauty of man. Fleeing the civil unrest resulting from Savonarola's reign, Michelangelo moved from Florence to Venice, then to Rome.

Madonna of the Stairs Battle of the Centaurs Bacchus

During his five years in Rome, he created the first of his famous works, including the sculptures Bacchus (1496-1497) and Pietà (1498-1501) in St. Peter's Basilica. In 1500, at the invitation of the citizens of Florence, Michelangelo returned to this city in triumph.

Soon he had at his disposal a four-meter-high marble block, which two sculptors had already rejected. For the next three years, he worked selflessly, almost without leaving his workshop. In 1504, a monumental statue of a naked David was presented to the public.

In 1505, the power-hungry Pope Julius II ordered Michelangelo to return to Rome, ordering a tomb for himself. The sculptor worked for a whole year on the giant bronze statue that was to crown the monument, so that almost immediately after finishing the work he could witness how his creation was melted down into cannons.

After the death of Julius II in 1513, his heirs insisted on completing another project for a tomb sculpture. This, including numerous alterations caused by the whims of customers, took 40 years of Michelangelo’s life. As a result, he was forced to abandon the implementation of his plan, which included the erection of a tomb as part of the internal architecture of St. Peter's Cathedral.

The colossal marble Moses and the statues known as "Slaves" remained forever impressive parts of an unfinished whole.

According to contemporaries, Michelangelo was a closed and self-absorbed person, subject to sudden outbursts of violence. In his private life he was almost an ascetic, going to bed late and rising early. They said that he often slept without even taking off his shoes.

In 1547, he was appointed chief architect for the reconstruction of St. Peter's Basilica and designed the enormous dome, which remains one of the greatest masterpieces of architecture to this day.

Michelangelo was born into the family of the poorest Florentine nobleman, Lodovico Buonarotti. Due to a lack of funds, the infant child was given to another Topolino couple for support. It was they who taught the future genius to knead clay and work with a chisel before reading and writing. Michelangelo himself told his friend Giorgio Vasari:

“If there is anything good in my talent, it is because I was born in the rarefied air of your Aretina land, and both the chisels and the hammer with which I make my statues, I took from the statue of my nurse.”

Michelangelo created the famous statue of David from a piece of white marble that was left over from another sculptor. The valuable stone changed hands only because the previous owner was unable to do work on the piece and then abandoned it.

When Michelangelo completed his first Pietà and it was exhibited in St. Peter's Basilica, the author heard rumors that people attributed this work to another sculptor - Cristoforo Solari. Then Michelangelo carved on the belt of the Virgin Mary: “This was done by the Florentine Michelangelo Buonarotti.” He later regretted this outburst of pride and never signed his sculptures again.

The great master often complained about losses and was considered a poor man. All his life the master saved on literally everything. There was practically no furniture or jewelry in his house. However, after the death of the sculptor, it turned out that Michelangelo had collected a fortune. Researchers estimate that in modern terms his fortune was tens of millions of dollars.

In the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo painted about a thousand square meters of the ceiling and the far walls of the chapel. It took the artist four years to paint the ceiling. During this time, the master’s health deteriorated greatly - while working, a huge amount of paint got into his lungs and eyes. Michelangelo worked without assistants, painted the ceiling for days, forgetting about sleep, and slept on scaffolding without taking off his boots for weeks. But it was undoubtedly worth the effort. Goethe wrote:

“Without seeing the Sistine Chapel, it is difficult to get a clear idea of ​​what one person can do.”

In the winter of 1494, there was heavy snowfall in Florence. The ruler of the Florentine Republic, Piero de' Medici, who went down in history under the name Piero the Unlucky, summoned Michelangelo and ordered him to sculpt a snow statue. The work was completed, and contemporaries noted its beauty, but no information about what the snowman looked like or who he depicted was preserved.

Michelangelo depicted Moses with horns in his sculpture. Many art historians attribute this to misinterpretation of the Bible. The Book of Exodus says that when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the tablets, the Israelites found it difficult to look at his face. At this point in the Bible, a word is used that can be translated from Hebrew as both “rays” and “horns.” However, judging by the context, we can definitely say that we are talking specifically about rays of light - that Moses’ face shone, and was not horned.

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