Discovery Essay 3: Michelangelo’s Contributions
Michelangelo is widely believed to be one of the greatest artists during the Italian Renaissance period. Some would even argue he is the greatest artists of all time. His works revealed techniques and images that had never been seen before. It demonstrated a blend of psychological insight and physical realism (History.com). Some of his most memorable work is his Pietà and David sculptures and his Sistine Chapel celling paintings, which have been preserved so that future generations can see and appreciate his genius. He was known as a genius man in respects that he tried to link the arts and the sciences together as one. Michelangelo was interested in the arts a young age, and throughout his lifetime
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Shortly after, his family moved to Florence, which he always felt was his hometown. At the age of 13, he became an apprentice to painter Domenico Ghirlandaio; whom was well-known for his murals. Michelangelo’s father, a Florentine government worker, did not approve of his choice in the arts as a career. But he rebelled against his father, and continued with his dreams. About a year after he started his apprentice, he drew the attention of Lorenzo de’ Medici, Florence’s leading art patron. Lorenzo, who surrounded himself by the city’s most talented men, soon invited Michelangelo to live in his palatial home (History.com). During his stay in the Medici home, Michelangelo learned about philosophy and politics through scholars and writers in Lorenzo’s circle of intelligent …show more content…
Pope Julius II called him back to Rome to depict the twelve apostles on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. This is the most sacred part of the Vatican. It is here that popes are elected and inaugurated. Unfortunately, Julius did not get exactly his wishes. Over a four year timespan, Michelangelo painted twelve figures, only seven of them prophets and the other five were female prophets of myth. These figures were painted around the border of the ceiling. The center of the ceiling is filled with significant scenes from the book of Genesis. Most specifically the creation of the world, the creation and fall of Adam and Eve, and the story of Noah (The Creation). Critics insinuate the way Michelangelo depicts some of his profits is symbolic of Michelangelo’s sensitivity to the fundamental difficulty of the human condition (History.com). Though there have been damages to the ceiling over the years, the images still very clear and widely